Things Unknown
by purastella
Summary: Bella didn't expect for things to be different when she was sent to live with her cousin in Mystic Falls. The Mikaelson's never thought they would meet someone as innocent as Bella who would be able to accept them for what they are. When Bella runs into Rebekah on her first day at Mystic Falls High, she changes the Original Family's future in ways they couldn't imagine.
1. Chapter 1

Rebekah was not having a good day. Between Matt seemingly avoiding her and the doppelgänger and her crew trying their best to make her life miserable at every turn, she was regretting her decision to hang around at this ridiculous farce of a school.

She was heading towards her next class when someone ran into her. She stumbled back a step while the other person fell backwards, both of their books landing on the floor.

"Watch where you're going!" Rebekah snapped.

"I'm so sorry," said the figure on the floor, which Rebekah was now realizing was a girl. "I wasn't watching where I was going. I didn't mean to run into you."

Rebekah watched the girl as she gathered up both their things before recognizing who she was. "You're Isabella right? Caroline Forbes cousin?"

The girl cringed. "Um yeah. I go by Bella though." She stood up and handed Rebekah her things. "Here. Sorry about running into you."

"Don't worry about it," Rebekah said with a smile. "I'm sorry for snapping at you. I've just been a having a trying sort of a day is all."

"You and me both," Bella muttered. She looked down at the paper in her hands. "If it's not too much of a bother, could you tell me where Mr. Saltzman's classroom is?"

"I'm headed there right now if you would like to walk with me," Rebekah offered.

Bella gave her a small smile. "That'd be great."

As they started to walk to class together Rebekah decided to try and see just how close Bella was to her cousin. "So, Caroline wasn't available to show you around?" she asked, trying to sound casual.

Bella shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't actually seen her that much since I got here. We didn't even come to school together so I couldn't ask her to show me around."

"Well, if you need a tour guide I would be happy to help. I just started here recently as well so I know it can be a little difficult to find your way around."

"I don't want to be a bother…" Bella trailed off, unsure.

"It's no trouble at all," Rebekah assured her. "Us new girls have to stick together, right?"

Bella bit her lip for a moment before smiling at her. "You know what? A tour sounds great."

"Brilliant! Are you free after class? We could go grab lunch and then, after we eat, I can show you where the rest of your classes are at."

"That would be great!"

They had reached the classroom at the same time as Elena and Caroline, who had spotted the two girls walking together and had immediately started freaking out.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Bella blinked at Caroline. "Uh, walking to class?"

"Not that," Caroline snapped. "I meant, what are you doing with _her_?" Her tone implied that she thought Rebekah was trash.

Bella's eyes hardened and her fingers clenched around her notebook. " _Her_ name is Rebekah and she was nice enough to walk with me to class."

"Okay then, " Caroline said with a forced grin, obviously trying to soothe Bella's palpable annoyance. "Well, lets go introduce you to Mr. Saltzman." She ushered Bella into the classroom without a backwards glance.

"Stay away from Bella," Elena warned Rebekah. "She isn't involved in this."

Rebekah walked past without bothering to respond. She took her seat and watched as the hunter handed a book to Bella as he welcomed her to Mystic Falls. Bella shifted uncomfortably and gave him a small smile back before turning around and scanning the room. When she saw Rebekah she smiled at her and walked over.

"Is this seat taken?" She nodded her head towards the seat next to Rebekah.

Rebekah was taken aback, having expected her to sit over by her cousin but was pleased that she had picked her over Caroline. "No ones sitting there; feel free."

Bella looked slightly wistful for a moment before she sat down and opened her notebook to a blank page, grabbing a pen from her backpack. Rebekah glanced behind her to see Caroline glaring at her and Elena giving Bella a worried look.

"So," Rebekah said, turning back to Bella. "Decided not to sit with Caroline today?"

Bella grimaced. "Caroline can be a little… overbearing sometimes. She's just always so energetic and it's hard to handle. We've never really gotten along before so I tend to try and avoid her so that she doesn't get upset."

"Ah yes. She certainly is spirited. Although I should warn you, I am on the cheerleading squad with her and I did help plan the last school dance."

"Oh the horror!" Bella gasped. Then she grinned and said, "As long as you don't try and make me wear heels or short skirts then I think we'll be good but as soon as you start wanting to dress me up as some sort of life-size Barbie, it's over."

Rebekah laughed. "You say that now but just wait; I'll have you asking me to take you shopping."

Bella laughed too. "Keep dreaming."

"Alright," called Mr. Saltzman, calling the classes' attention to the front of the room. "Sorry about the wait, but it took a few more minutes than I had anticipated to get everything ready for you guys. Before we begin, I'd like to introduce you all to a new student, Miss Isabella Swan." Rebekah watched as Bella turned bright red and slunk down as low as she could in her seat. It seemed as if she didn't like having any attention focused on her, the complete opposite of her cousin. "Isabella is new to Mystic Falls so I expect you all to introduce yourselves to her when you get the chance and to help her out if she needs it. In other words, don't be complete jerks," the hunter finished with a smirk.

Bella looked like she wished she could make herself invisible and Rebekah couldn't help but feel a small twinge of sympathy for her. "Chin up," she whispered. "You have to own it. The more you react, the more people will pay attention to you."

Bella stared at her for a moment before taking a deep breath and nodded. She sat up straight in her seat and uncapped her pen before beginning to copy the notes that were written on the blackboard. Rebekah smiled at her again before turning back and paying attention to the lesson, mentally correcting all the facts the teacher gave that were wrong. She caught Bella's eye halfway through the lesson smiled at her. Rebekah hoped that this girls appearance would finally liven things up for her.


	2. Chapter 2

Bella dropped her backpack onto her desk chair and then collapsed on her bed with a sigh. School hadn't been as terrible as she had thought it was going to be. She had hoped that things wouldn't be so bad since she knew one person but when that one person is Caroline Forbes who is, in the nicest of terms, kind of a narcissistic bitch, she's usually more of a hindrance than a help. She also overreacts to the _stupidest_ things. Bella replayed the events that had occurred that day at lunch.

 _Bella and Rebekah walked into the cafeteria together, Bella laughing at Rebekah's impression of one of the football players that had tried to hit on her as they were walking down the hall. They walked through the line and got their food, Rebekah telling her about some of the students she should try and avoid if she didn't want to hear some of the worst pick-up lines known to man._

 _Bella was surprised by how at ease she felt around Rebekah. She had never been able to talk to anyone this easily after having just met them, not even the Cullens. She had flinched slightly after having thought that and was glad when it seemed that Rebekah hadn't even noticed. While it didn't hurt as much to think about the family that had left her, the thought of them still caused an ache in her chest. Especially remembering him._

 _After they had paid for their food Rebekah led them to a table that was outside and partially shaded by a large oak tree. Bella was somewhat surprised at the choice in seating._

 _"Don't you want to sit with your other friends?" she asked. "I don't mind if you want to. I don't want to monopolize your lunchtime."_

 _Rebekah smiled at her, but Bella thought that she looked somewhat sad. "I don't really have all that many friends here to be honest. I don't get along with some of the more… influential students here. High school really is a hierarchy."_

 _"You mean Caroline," Bella stated. Rebekah gave her a searching glance and she continued to speak. "It's okay if you don't get along with her. Like I said, I don't really get along with her either. Our personalities just seem to really clash and her weird obsession with Elena kind of worries me."_

 _"Obsession with Elena?" Rebekah seemed surprised._

 _Bella blushed. "Well yeah. Ever since we were little she always seemed to be really jealous of Elena. Things just seemed to be really easy for Elena and it was like she never really had to try that hard in order for her to get what she wanted. Caroline was really jealous of that. Don't tell anyone I said that though," Bella pleaded. "It's really none of my business."_

 _Rebekah smiled reassuringly at her. "Don't worry about it. I won't say a word. Besides, you didn't say anything earth shattering; I had just never thought about Caroline's friendship with Elena too much but after what you've said, I can see what you mean. They seem to be more… Frienemies than actual friends."_

 _Bella was still hesitant after having revealed something so easily to a stranger. She knew it wasn't a huge secret or anything but if Caroline found out she told someone about her whole Elena thing then she would make her life a living hell._

 _As if she was summoned by Bella's guilty thoughts, Caroline appeared beside the table. "Hey Bella," she said with a smile, completely ignoring Rebekah. "Why don't you come sit with me? I can introduce you to the gang."_

 _Bella stared at her. "Uh… that's okay. I'm having lunch with Rebekah." Rebekah looked at her in shock before quickly smirking at Caroline._

 _"See, Caroline, she's here willingly. Now go run back to your little friends now."_

 _"Yeah, right," Caroline scoffed. "Like anyone would sit with you willingly."_

 _"Hey," Bella protested before Rebekah could respond. "There's no need to be so rude. Rebekah hasn't done anything wrong."_

 _"Sure she hasn't. Now, Bella," Caroline bent over and looked her directly in the eye. Her pupils seemed to be dilating as she said, "Come with me and sit at my table, now."_

 _Bella wrinkled her nose. "First off, no. Second off, what's wrong with your eyes?"_

 _Caroline reeled back in shock while Rebekah stiffened. Then Caroline leaned forward and sniffed Bella. Bella almost fell of the bench trying to get away from her._

 _"What the hell are you doing?" she nearly shouted. Caroline straightened up quickly and looked at her in confusion._

 _"It doesn't smell like you've been around vervain," she murmured. "But then how?"_

 _"What? What is wrong with you? And what's vervain?" Bella had no clue what was going on._

 _"Vervain is a type of plant that's native to this part of the country. It's not all that commonly known," Rebekah explained, staring at Bella speculatively._

 _"Okay…" Bella said slowly. "Why are we talking about a plant right now? And why were you sniffing me for it?"_

 _"It's nothing," Caroline said hastily, starting to back away. "I'll talk to you later." And then she turned around and hurried back inside._

 _"Well then," Bella said blankly. "That was fun. I guess."_

 _"Do you really not know what vervain is?" Rebekah was trying to be casual but Bella could tell that, for some reason, her answer was important to her._

 _"I really don't. I've never even heard of it before. I'm not really into flowers."_

 _"And you're not wearing any jewelry?" Rebekah persisted. "Did the sheriff give you anything to drink today?"_

 _"No." Bella was getting a really bad feeling about all of this. "Rebekah, what's going on? Why are you all freaking out on me?"_

 _"It's really nothing you need to worry about, just curiosity on my part."_

And that was the end of that. No matter how many times and no matter how many different ways Bella asked her Rebekah refused to tell her anything. She always managed to change the subject in such a way that Bella didn't even realize what she had done till minutes later.

Other than that though her first day hadn't been all that bad. None of the students had been horrible to her and she was surprised to find that she actually liked Rebekah. Not just tolerated her or didn't hate her but actually liked her. She hadn't actually liked another person since they had left. Then again, she hadn't really felt much at all after they were gone except an aching, raw emptiness.

Bella heard the front door slam close and then Caroline was shouting her name. She groaned and rolled over, burying her face into her blankets. A few seconds later her bedroom door flew open and hit the wall with a bang.

"Didn't you hear me calling for you?" Caroline sounded annoyed. Bella didn't bother to answer her.

"Whatever. We need to talk." Caroline walked into the room and plopped down on the bed.

"About what?" came Bella's muffled voice.

"About what happened today at school."

"Listen," Bella sighed, sitting up and turning to face Caroline. "Whatever your deal is with Rebekah is not my problem."

"She's dangerous, Bella, and you shouldn't be hanging around her. She's only using you to get to me."

"Well, don't you have an inflated sense of importance," Bella sneered. She honestly didn't know why she reacted like this whenever she was around Caroline but it was almost instinct at this point. Maybe is was because she had to grow up fast to be able to take care of her mom while Caroline was very much spoiled as a child, or maybe it was just because of their innate personalities, but Bella didn't have a very high tolerance when it came to Caroline's dramatics.

"I'm trying to help you!"

"Well stop! I don't care if she's trying to steal your spot on the cheerleading team or on the dance committee or whatever! She has been nothing but nice to me so far and I'm not going to start avoiding her just because you don't like her!"

"It's only your first day. You can't just decide that she's the best person you've ever met based on your knowing her for one day!"

"You're right, I don't really know her yet. But I'm not going to start avoiding her and treating her like dirt just because you don't like her. I will stop talking to her once she gives me a reason to."

"You don't understand. This isn't about me," Caroline insisted. "It's not safe to be around her or her family. They're not good people."

Bella stared at her for a moment. She wondered what would have happened if there had been someone to warn her off when she had first met the Cullen's. Would she have listened? No, she probably wouldn't have. And, even after everything, she was still glad that she had met them. Even if they hadn't cared about her as much as she had cared about them, and despite all the pain she had suffered because of them, she was still grateful for the time she had been able to spend with them. The Cullen's were _vampires_ and yet she was still glad to have met them. She honestly didn't think that Rebekah Mikealson and her family could be any worse than that.

"I think I'll take my chances," she said finally.

"No." Caroline shook her head. "I won't let you do this." She leaned forward and locked eyes with Bella. "Stay away from the Mikealsons. Do not talk to them, do not go near them, don't even look at them." As she spoke her pupils began to dilate again.

"Seriously, what is wrong with your eyes?" Bella was slightly concerned now for Caroline. "You should probably go see a doctor or something. That isn't normal."

"Why isn't it working?!" Caroline looked frustrated.

"Why isn't what working?" Bella was starting to wish she had just gone to the library and stayed there instead of coming home.

"Are you sure you're not wearing any vervain?" Caroline asked, ignoring her question.

"Well, seeing as how I don't know what vervain even looks like, I'm not positive but I'm pretty sure I'm not."

"You have to be," Caroline muttered. "That's the only way. Unless…"

"Unless what?" Bella was worried that Caroline was insane.

"Nothing. Never mind. I'll be right back." Caroline left the room without another word. Bella stared blankly after her for a moment before getting up and grabbing her bag. She had no idea what was going on but she didn't feel like waiting around to find out.

Bella had accidently taken Rebekah's notebook home with her and it had notes for tomorrows history test in it. She wanted to see if she could find her and return it, though she guessed asking Caroline for her address was not a good idea. Her backpack hit the floor with a thud as Caroline threw a glass of water in her face.

Bella shrieked and sputtered. "What the hell Caroline?! What is wrong with you?!"

Caroline winced. "Sorry! I was just checking."

"Checking what? Whether or not I was the Wicked Witch of the West?"

"I… I don't know. You looked like you needed to cool down?"

Bella couldn't even think of a response to that. She picked up her backpack and shoved past Caroline, marching to the front door and slamming it behind her.

She stomped down the sidewalk, muttering under her breath all the horrible things that should happen to Caroline as she wiped away the water.

"Ow!" she shrieked. She grabbed her wrists and rubbed at it harshly, trying to get all of the water off of her wrist. She stared down at the scar on her wrist from where James bit her. The scar itself was still pale and shone slightly in the light but the skin around it was bright red, like she had burned it. "What on earth?" she muttered.

"Is there something wrong, love?" came an accented male voice. She looked up.

Standing in front of her was a tall, well-built man with dirty blond hair and bright blue eyes. She flushed slightly when he smirked at her and ducked her head down.

"No, nothing wrong. Just got something on my arm."

She expected for that to be it, for him to walk away without another word, but instead he stayed and stared at her for a moment.

Bella felt her face turn a darker shade of red. "Is there something wrong?"

"You're new to town aren't you?"

She groaned. "Yes."

The man chuckled. "Not a fan of attention then?"

She shook her head and looked back down at the ground.

"I'm Niklaus, but I much prefer to be called Klaus." He reached out and took her hand, lifting it up and brushing his lips across her knuckles.

Her eyes felt like they were going to pop out of head, they were so wide. "Okay."

His smirk seemed to grow wider. "And you are?"

"Oh! I'm Bella. Bella Swan. Well, my real name is Isabella but I prefer Bella cause it's shorter and I don't really feel like I am an Isabella. So, yeah. I'm Bella." She forced herself to stop rambling and took a deep, calming breath.

Klaus laughed again. "Well then. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Bella Swan."

Bella smiled shyly at him and then frowned. "Wait, you said your name was Klaus? You wouldn't happen to have a sister named Rebekah would you?"

The smile fell from his face. "Well that depends on why you want to know."

"Well, I met a Rebekah Mikealson today at school. We had lunch together and she mentioned she had a brother named Klaus and since it's not a common name I thought…"

Klaus relaxed and smiled at her again. "Ah. You must be the new friend Rebekah was saying she made today. You're Caroline's cousin correct?"

Bella sighed, already tired of being asked that question. "Yes. She's my second cousin."

"Ah. So her mother is related to one of your parents then?"

Bella gave him a weird look. "Yeah, Liz is my dad's cousin. Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," he looked her up and down and smirked. "So tell me, what happened to cause you to look like someone threw water in you face."

"Because someone did. My cousin threw a cup of water in my face."

Klaus looked amused. "Caroline threw a cup of water at you?"

"Yeah. It was weird. Although, not to be rude, but this town is pretty weird in general, especially in regards to the obsession with vervain."

"Obsession with vervain?"

"Yeah, Caroline and Rebekah kept asking me if I was wearing it or if I had drank it and I don't even know what it is!"

"Hmm. Interesting." Klaus murmured before smiling at her again. "Well, it was lovely to meet you Bella and I hope to be seeing you again soon." And then he turned and started to walk away.

"Wait!" she called out after him. He turned to face her and raised an eyebrow. Bella shrugged her bag off her shoulder and rummaged around until she pulled out a notebook. "Would you mind giving this to Rebekah?"

Klaus made no move to take the notebook from her outstretched hand. "What is it?"

"It's her notes for one of the classes we share. She gave it to me so that I could copy her notes but I forgot to give it back and there's supposed to be a test tomorrow. I'm exempt from having to take it since I'm a new student but I don't want her to not be able to study because of me."

Klaus just grinned at her. "Well, guess you'll have to give it back to her then, won't you, love?"

Bella frowned. "That's why I'm giving it to you."

"Ah, but what happens if I don't end up see Rebekah tonight? Then she won't get her notebook back."

"But don't you live together?" Bella had no idea what Klaus was trying to get at.

"Just because I live there doesn't mean I spend my nights there, now does it?" With one last smirk and wink, causing her already flushed face to turn even redder, he turned and walked away. She watched him until he turned the corner and was out of sight.

Bella sighed and lifted her hands to brush her hair out of her face. "This whole town is insane. And I just went off on a rant to a total stranger about a plant. I'm insane. Guess that means that this is probably a good fit."


	3. Chapter 3

Bella wandered around town until she ended up in a restaurant called the Mystic Grill. She debated on whether or not to go in and get something or just head back to the Forbes and make dinner but decided to take the night off from cooking. She needed to try and find Rebekah anyway and checking at what seemed like the local hangout seemed like a good start. Plus, she wanted to avoid running into Caroline for as long as possible.

Bella walked in and hurried over to a table, trying to avoid any awkward conversations like the one she had had outside with Klaus. She slid into her seat and looked up, taking in the interior of the place. She liked how it had an old-fashioned feel to it with the wood paneling and the long bar in the front. It was open and clean and she knew that this would be a great place to hang out with friends. Not that she really had any friends but still. The whole reason she was sent here was for a fresh start so maybe she could try and make some friends. Rebekah didn't seem too bad, although her brother was odd.

"Hey, you're Isabella right?" she looked up and stared at the blond haired, blue eyed boy who stood in front of her. He kind of reminded her of Mike but he seemed like he'd be less annoying.

When she didn't answer right away he smiled and said, "Hi, I'm Matt Donovan. I'm a friend of Caroline's."

She gave him a small smile. "It's nice to meet you. And I actually prefer to go by Bella."

"That's cool. Caroline and the others are actually sitting over there if you want to join them. I'm sure they wouldn't mind." He pointed to a booth over near the pool tables and she turned to see Caroline, Elena, and some of their other friends sitting there, staring at her. Bella wondered how Caroline had gotten there before her but realized that she had probably driven. Caroline gave her a weak smile but Bella kept her face blank before turning back to Matt.

"I'm fine. I was just going to get something to eat before I headed home."

"Are you sure? It's going to be dark out soon and it's not safe to be out walking by yourself."

"I'll be fine. Besides, I don't know when Caroline would be ready to leave and I don't want to be stuck waiting for her."

"Well, if you're sure but maybe you-"

"Hey, there you are. Sorry I'm late."

Bella jumped as Rebekah appeared beside her and slid into the seat across from her. "Hope I didn't keep you waiting long." She glanced over at Matt and smiled. "Hello Matt."

"Hey." Matt nodded to her and then turned back to Bella. "I'll be back in a minute with some water to give you guys some time to figure out what you want to order." He turned and walked away, Rebekah staring at his back with a sad expression.

Bella glanced between them. "Is there something going on with you and Matt?"

Rebekah turned back to her. "Just a misunderstanding."

Bella nodded but didn't push her to talk. "What are you doing here? Not that I'm not glad to see you," she hastened to reassure her. "Just surprised."

"I came in to get a drink and saw you here sitting by yourself so I figured I'd join you. Hope you don't mind." Rebekah picked up her menu and began to look it over.

"Not at all! I don't mind having the company. Plus, you saved me from Matt trying to convince me to over and eat with Caroline."

"Glad to be of help," Matt came back then and placed their glasses down before asking if they knew what they wanted to order. Bella glanced at the menu quickly before ordering grilled chicken and a side salad. Rebecca ordered the same and a plate of fries for them to share.

"Good thinking," Bella said with a smile after Matt had left.

"The fries here are pretty good," she took a sip of water and Bella thought she looked somewhat uncomfortable. "So, I heard you met my brother." It seemed like she was trying hard to sound casual but Bella could tell she was nervous.

"I did. It's a little scary how quickly word spreads in this town. He seems," Bella struggled to come up with an appropriate word. "Nice."

Rebekah laughed. "That's not usually the word used to describe him. Scary, is the more common choice."

Bella shook her head. "I thought he was more odd than scary."

"Odd?"

"Well, yeah. He had just met me but he was asking about how I was related to the Forbes and stuff. It was just odd."

"Odd." Rebekah appeared thoughtful. "Well, I suppose that works as well as any other word. Yes, Nik is a bit odd."

"You call him Nik? I thought he went by Klaus?"

"His full name is Niklaus but he prefers to be called Klaus," Rebekah explained. "Since I am his baby sister, though, I am allowed to call him Nik."

"I see how it is." Bella was surprised at how happy she felt being able to just sit and talk to Rebekah like she was just some normal girl. "Oh! Before I forget," Bella grabbed the notebook out of her bag and slid it across the table to Rebekah. "Here's your notebook. I forgot to give it back to you earlier today and I didn't want you to not be able to go over your notes for the test tomorrow. I tried to give it to Klaus but he wouldn't take it." Bella felt herself flush again at the memory of him practically flat out telling her that he wouldn't be home that night because he would be out hooking up.

Rebekah sighed when she saw Bella blushing. "Let me guess, he flirted with you. Just completely charmed you."

Bella shook her head quickly. "No! Of course he didn't flirt with me. He just said that he couldn't give you the notebook for me because he would be out. All night."

Rebekah laughed and she seemed less tense now. "That sounds like Nik. But why did you phrase it like that? Why wouldn't he have flirted with you?"

Bella shrugged but didn't answer. When Rebekah saw that she wasn't going to respond, she changed the subject. "So, do tell me why you decided to go with such a wet appearance."

Bella laughed. "I guess Caroline decided I needed a new look; she threw a glass of water at me."

Rebekah looked over Bella's head and stared at Caroline, who was looking quite uncomfortable. _Well,_ Rebekah thought, _that's what you get for eavesdropping_. "Why did she do that?"

"No idea. She was yelling at me about… stuff and then her eyes did that weird thing again before she started muttering about vervain, left the room, and then came back and threw a glass of water in my face."

"She was telling you to stay away from me," Rebekah stated.

Bella shrugged and looked away. "It doesn't matter. I'm more worried about Caroline anyway. That thing with her eyes is not normal. I wonder if she's sick or something."

"I'm sure it's nothing," Rebekah reassured her. "Did anything happen after she threw the water on you?"

"No. I asked her what she was doing, she told me that I looked like I needed to cool down," Bella and Rebekah both rolled their eyes at that, "And then I left."

"And you were fine?" Rebekah persisted. "You didn't have reaction to the water or anything?"

Bella hesitated and Rebekah watched as she moved to cover her arm. "No."

She was lying and they both knew it. At that moment, Matt came back to their table with a tray of food and set their plates in front of them. "You guys need anything else?" he asked.

"We're fine," Rebekah said with a bright smile.

Matt gave a small smile back at her before nodding and walking away.

"So, besides Klaus, do you have any other siblings?"

Rebekah sighed and stabbed her fork into her salad. "Yes, I have three other brothers besides Klaus. Their names are Finn, Elijah, and Kol."

"That must be nice," Bella commented, a little sad. She had always wanted siblings.

"Not really," Rebekah replied with a frown. "They can be very… overbearing."

"Aren't brothers supposed to be like that with their sisters?"

Rebekah gave her a forced smile but didn't say anything and Bella dropped the subject.

Bella spent the rest of evening being regaled with stories by Rebekah about the antics that went on by some of the students and teachers at the high school. Despite it being a small town, Mystic Falls had some very interesting characters.

"So, Mr. Saltzman was dating Elena's aunt, who died, and now he's living with them and helping to take care of them?"

"Yes."

"And they're still allowed to be in his class? Isn't that a conflict of interests or something?"

"You would think so but Elena has quite the knack for getting out of trouble," Rebekah smirked and took a small sip of water, glancing back behind Bella.

A loud banging noise from behind Bella caused her to spin around in her chair, just in time to see Caroline marching over to their table, her chair pushed back against the wall.

Bella groaned. "I'm going to apologize in advance for whatever she says."

Rebekah gave her a wink and then looked behind her to smirk at Caroline. "Do you need something?"

"Yeah," Caroline snapped. "I need Bella to come with me. We're going home."

Bella glared at her. "If you want to go home now then you go right on ahead but I'm not. I'm going to stay here."

Caroline huffed. "No, you're not."

Bella felt like she was six years old again and trying to convince Caroline that she didn't want to play princess.

"I can take her home, if that's what you're concerned about," Rebekah offered with a smile. "It's no trouble at all."

Caroline glared at her for a moment before she smiled. "That's okay, I'll just wait with you guys until she's ready to go. I don't think Mom would like it if I just abandoned her on her first day."

Bella glared. "You should stop smiling like that; you have crazy eyes and it makes you look like the Joker from Batman."

Caroline's jaw dropped and Rebekah laughed outright. Bella finished her drink before grabbing her bag. "I guess I better go," she told Rebekah with obvious reluctance. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

Rebekah smiled at her reluctance to leave and the hope in her voice when she asked to see her tomorrow. "Of course! Shall we meet at the tables in front of the school at 8?"

Bella's face lit up. "Sounds great! See you then!"

After dropping a few bills onto the table, Bella turned and left with Caroline right on her heels. As soon as the door shut behind them, Elena was up and walking over to the table, Bonnie following behind her, ever the faithful lackey.

"You need to leave Bella alone."

Rebekah smirked at them. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I haven't laid a finger on the girl."

"Maybe not yet, but you will. We all know what your like."

Rebekah's smirk dropped. "Well then, maybe you should have tried to befriend the girl and then she wouldn't have had to associate with the likes of me."

Rebekah pushed her chair back and grabbed her notebook. After paying her bill she glided out of the bar, carefully keeping her eyes in front of her.

She was tired of having to play nice with the doppelganger and her friends simply because Klaus said so. It made her sick to her stomach having to see them day after day and not be allowed to touch them. Her lack of action was making them cocky and they now believed that they could do whatever they pleased because she wasn't going to retaliate, like she was some sort of trained pet. Well, they were going to be in for a nasty surprise because she was not going to leave Bella alone no matter what they said. Rebekah was surprised to find that she did truly like Bella and could see herself becoming friends with the girl. She seemed genuinely nice and she didn't seem quick to judge. Bella understood and respected the fact that everyone had a past and that there were some things that could be shared and some things better left forgotten. She was both intuitive and sensitive, something Rebekah found to be lacking in her siblings, who were the only people she had been able to truly talk to as of late. Even if they had only spoke of inconsequential things, Rebekah had found herself able to open up to Bella with an ease she hadn't had when speaking to someone since her human days. Her brothers were everything to her, they were her family, but they were all boys and she found it difficult to talk to them about many things in her life.

Rebekah had arrived back at the house they were currently residing in and strode in, not bothering to try and be quiet since her siblings had most likely be aware of her impending arrival before she even arrived at the property line. She walked into the front parlor and found Klaus lounging in one of the chairs with his sketchbook in hand.

He didn't look up. "Did you have a good time pining?"

Rebekah glared. "You shouldn't say such things. You know what they say about those who assume."

Klaus glanced up at her then with a smirk of amusement. "So, you're saying you weren't at the Grill staring longingly at some baby-faced human?"

"Not entirely. I was at the Grill, but I wasn't there for Matt. I had dinner with Bella." Rebekah watched Klaus carefully, wondering at how he would react.

His eyebrows went up slightly in surprise but then his expression became somewhat pensive. "Ah yes, the lovely Miss Swan. I had the pleasure of meeting her earlier today."

Rebekah grinned, remembering Bella describing him as being 'odd'. "Yes, she mentioned that at dinner when she gave me back her notebook. I had also heard one of the doppelgangers friends mention it; apparently you weren't very discreet."

"That's because I wasn't trying to be." Klaus studied his sister for a moment before stating, "You like her."

Rebekah hesitated, considering whether it would more prudent, and safer for Bella, if she lied but decided against it. "I do. I find her to be far more enjoyable to talk with than the rest of the oafs."

Klaus gave a half-grin. "She is different. Especially since she seems to be able to resist any form of compulsion without the use of vervain. I considered that she might be a witch but she seems truly ignorant."

"I think she is," Rebekah answered as she perched on the arm of the couch. "She seems to believe that Caroline is ill because of how her eyes look when she's trying to compel Bella. It's rather amusing."

"Aww," came Kol's voice drifting in from the hallway. "Does Rebekah have a little crush? Decided to give up on men and try dabbling with women? Can't say I blame you there. Women are quite-"

He ducked to avoid the glass rushing towards his head. "Could you be any more disgusting?" Rebekah spat.

"I'm just teasing you, dear sister. I think it's grand that you've finally found yourself a little friend. Better than you finding yourself another love interest. We all know what usually happens to those, after all."

Rebekah was shaking with rage. "At least I've managed to find people who can love me. You, on the other hand, couldn't get someone to fall in love with you if you were the last man on earth!"

"That's enough," Klaus finally interrupted. "This conversation is pointless and boring. Rebekah, continue cultivating your friendship with Isabella, she could prove to be useful to us. As for you, Kol, stay out of it. I'd rather this girl not die yet."

Rebekah rolled her eyes. Trust Nik to turn her attempts at friendship into his plan at finding a new weak link in the chain. "Yes, brother."

Kol didn't say anything, simply glaring at them both as he swept out of the room, Rebekah following after him a moment later.

Klaus sighed and downed his drink. Kol in a bad mood was never a good thing but he couldn't have him going off and killing the Swan girl. There was something about her that intrigued him and he refused to allow anything to happen to her until he had figured out what made her so special. Even then, he may decide against letting her come to harm. At the very least, protecting her would endear him to Caroline.

He sighed at the thought of the young vampire. She was so beautiful and so full of spirit, so pure despite the taint of their nature. For some reason though, she refused to have anything to do with him and he was unsure what to do. It'd been a long time since a woman had denied him and he couldn't help but wonder whether or not he truly cared for Caroline or if he just enjoyed the fact that she was denying him. Klaus would admit to being jealous of Tyler for having a love so devoted to him. He wondered what it would be like to have someone love him like that, someone who would never turn against him no matter what.

Klaus threw down his sketchbook and glass in annoyance of his thoughts before running out the door. Draining some random human dry was just the thing to help rid him of such melancholy thoughts.


	4. Chapter 4

Bella found Rebekah sitting at the same picnic table they had met each at every morning for the past few days and collapsed into the bench across from her with a groan, burying her head into her arms. Rebekah glanced up from her phone and raised an eyebrow at Bella's huddled form.

"I'm guessing you did not have a pleasant morning?"

"I don't even know what that is anymore," came Bella's muffled reply.

"Come now," Rebekah chided with a laugh. "It can't be all that terrible."

Bella lifted her head up and stared at her in disbelief. "I'm living with _Caroline_. Loud, bossy, rude Caroline. She spent an hour last night trying to convince me that being your friend is like being friends with a killer whale."

"A whale?" Rebekah was unsure whether she should just laugh or be offended.

"Right? If she was going to compare friendship with you to friendship with some sort of animal, she should have used a hippo."

Now Rebekah couldn't contain her amusement. "A hippo? Should I be taking offense that you're comparing me to large, 3,000 pound animal?"

"Hey, don't disrespect hippos. Those things are territorial and vicious. Have you seen how wide their mouths open? They're terrifying!"

Rebekah couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so hard. From several yards away, leaning against a tree and watching the two girls closely, Klaus also gave a small chuckle. Hearing his sisters laughter, and seeing Bella's happiness at having caused it, helped to soothe his suspicions. He hadn't truly believed that the girl was a threat to his family but her ability to resist compulsion without the use of vervain had caught his attention.

"What are you doing here?" hissed a voice from behind him.

He glanced behind him and smirked. "Well, good morning to you too, love."

Caroline glared. "First off, I'm not your love. And second off, leave my cousin alone."

Klaus turned to face her fully and held out his arms. "Take a look around, _love._ I'm nowhere near your precious cousin."

She scoffed. "Yeah, whatever. Just stay away from here; she doesn't have anything to do with our world."

"Are you sure about that? Her ability to resist compulsion without the use of vervain suggests that she's not exactly normal, doesn't it?"

Caroline grimaced. "That's just some sort of freaky coincidence. Face it, if she had any idea about vampires then there's no way she go anywhere near your family, let alone willingly talk to one of you."

Klaus' lips quirked. "Maybe so, love, but just because she doesn't know about the supernatural doesn't mean that she's not one of us."

The bell rang and Caroline scowled in frustration. "Just stay away from Bella!" She turned from him and walked over to Bella and Caroline, grabbing her cousins' arm and pulling her up and away from the Original sister. Bella ineffectually tried to pull away from Caroline before giving up and letting herself be dragged away, turning back to Rebekah and mouthing something to her. He watched his sister throw back her head and laugh, loosing herself to her amusement for a moment before pulling herself together and following the girls into the school.

Klaus couldn't help the smile that found its way back to his face.

* * *

Bella wandered into the cafeteria, trying to spot Rebekah, when she was intercepted by Caroline and co.

"We need to talk," demanded Caroline, planting herself in front of Bella.

"No, we don't," said Bella, trying to duck around her but was stopped when Caroline quickly stepped to the side, blocking her way.

"Oh, yes, we do," Caroline's eyes widened and Bella flinched.

"Caroline," she said, cautiously. "You're looking kind of… insane, right now."

"Yeah, well, maybe you should stop driving me crazy then!" Caroline's voice was unnaturally perky and Bella instantly felt on alert. Funny how she felt more afraid of Caroline at that moment than she ever had of Edward and he was a vampire.

"This freaky friends thing you have going on with the Mikaelson's needs to stop. They are dangerous and violent and just overall not a group you want to be associated with, okay? They're bad news."

Bella blinked at her. "I'm not friends with all the Mikaelson's; I'm only friends with Rebekah."

Caroline threw her hands into the air. "That's not my point! You need to stay away from all of them, and that includes her! I won't allow you to hang around with them!"

Bonnie and Elena both cringed and Caroline seemed to instantly regret her word choice as she took in the look on Bella's face. "You won't allow me to hang around them?" she repeated in a calm, even tone. "I had thought that I had made myself pretty clear earlier but I guess you're too stupid to get something the first time so I'll make things clearer for you: You are not the boss of me. You are not my mother, you are not my sister, you're not even my friend. You have absolutely no say in what I do or with whom I spend my time with. If I want to be friends with Rebekah Mikaelson then I will be friends with Rebekah Mikaelson and there is nothing you can do to change that. Heck, I could be friends with Rebekah and screwing around with all of her brothers and you wouldn't be able to say or do anything so why don't you and your little posse just take a hike!" And with that, Bella spun around and walked out of the cafeteria and bumped straight into Rebekah.

Bella stumbled back a step and stared at Rebekah, her face slowly turning red as she took in the amused look on the blond girls face. "Umm… hi?"

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at her. "Be my friend and screwing around with all of my brothers, huh?"

Bella opened her mouth and then closed it again. She tried to think of something to say but couldn't think of anything.

Rebekah laughed at the look on her face. "Relax, Bella. I was rather impressed with the way you stood up for yourself."

Bella felt herself turn even redder and then she remembered their conversation from their dinner. "You know I didn't mean that, right?" she asked, anxiously.

Rebekah was surprised at the turn in mood. "Didn't mean what?"

"I'm not trying to… you know… sleep with your brothers or anything. I wouldn't do that to you."

Rebekah then understood what Bella was thinking and a bright smile lit up her face. She reached out and touched Bella's arm as she said, "It's okay, Bella. I know you're not that kind of girl."

"After what you were saying the other night, I didn't want you to think that I was interested in your brothers or anything. Pretty sure that goes against the friend code."

Rebekah laughed and linked arms with Bella. "Stop worrying, Bella, I know you wouldn't do something like that. If you were that type of girl, then you would have been all over Klaus."

Bella made a face at that and then started giggling along with Rebekah before allowing herself to be lead off towards the school entrance. "Where are we going?"

"It has occurred to me that you have most likely not received a proper tour of the town since your arrival so, since it's Friday and the teachers are being exceptionally boring today, I have decided to rectify that mistake."

"What'd you have in mind?"

Rebekah had led her out of the school and to her car by this point and she unlocked the door and gestured for Bella to get in. "I think it is high time that someone showed you around and introduced you to all of the joys Mystic Falls has to offer."

Bella couldn't stop smiling as she climbed into the passenger seat. "Does Mystic Falls really have all that much to offer? Other than the strange people?"

"Not really," Rebekah freely admitted as she drove the car out of the parking lot. "But there are still a few treasures to be seen."

Bella settled back into her seat. "Alright then, lead the way."

* * *

"We have to do something about this!" Caroline fumed as she paced back and forth.

She had barged into her mother's office that afternoon, interrupting a meeting between her and Damon, to demand that something be done about the growing friendship between Bella and Rebekah Mikaelson.

"What exactly do you want us to do?" asked Damon, seemingly amused at Caroline's frustration.

"Make her stop! Forbid her from being friends with her! Something!"

Liz sighed. "I can't forbid her from being friends with Rebekah. I understand your concern and I share it but the more you try to stop her the harder she's going to fight us. Girl has a stubborn streak a mile wide. Plus, when Charlie called last night to check up on her and she told him about Rebekah, he was thrilled. Said that she sounded more alive in that one conversation than she had since the day that boy broke up with her. If I do anything to stop them from being friends, he'll freak out. Charlie sent her here because he hoped that being here would pull Bella out of her funk and it has. The fact that we don't like her seemingly nice and innocent friend won't matter all that much to him in the end."

"But you're the sheriff!" Caroline protested. "Surely he'll just take you're word for it, what with you all being fellow officers and all that jazz!"

"And say what to him?" Liz responded, exasperated. "She hasn't done anything that I can tell him about. It's going to look like were trying to keep them away from each other just because you don't like her."

"Why don't we just compel her to stay away from anything Mikaelson and be done with it?" Damon asked, sounding bored as he messed with something on his phone.

"Don't you think I already tried that, Damon?" Caroline hissed. "She's somehow able to resist compulsion and without the use of vervain, too!"

Damon leaned forward, his interest finally caught, and Liz was also caught off-guard. "She can't be compelled?" he repeated. "And you're sure she's not a vampire?"

"Positive," Liz told him.

"Well," drawled Damon. "That does make things more interesting, doesn't it?"

"This isn't a good thing, Damon! Rebekah knows that Bella can't be compelled and now Klaus knows too and is all interested in her! Bella's totally innocent in all this and we can't let her be sucked into all our craziness!"

"Seems to me that she's already a part of it and that it's her own fault. No one made her befriend that most dangerous girl in school." Damon was unsympathetic.

"It's not her fault, it's mine," Caroline told them as she sank into a chair in front of her mom's desk. "I should've stuck with her and showed her around the school but Elena and Bonnie wanted to talk and I couldn't let Bella tag along so I left her to fend for herself. I might as well have put a sign on her back that said 'I'm a target' and pushed her towards Rebekah."

"That was pretty dumb," Damon agreed.

"I'll talk to Bella tonight after my shift ends," Liz interrupted before Caroline could start yelling again. "Now, both of you, get on out of here; I've got work to do."

"Fine," snapped Caroline. "I'll see you at home." With one last glare at Damon, she stormed out of the office.

Liz sighed and ran a hand over her face. "This is not good."

"What's not?" asked Damon. "The fact that your cousins kid is now BFFs with a crazy chick or the fact that she's somehow able to resist vampire compulsion and the most dangerous family in existence knows about it?"

"Both."

* * *

"This is so cool!" Bella exclaimed. Rebekah had taken her to a series of underground caves that Bella hadn't even known existed. The walls were covered in runes that Rebekah had told me were drawn by Vikings that had lived in the area over a thousand. Bella was ecstatic that she was able to see such a preserved piece of history up close.

"I'm so glad you think so; I thought you would enjoy seeing these." Rebekah was happy that Bella was so appreciative of what others her age would probably have only seen as a cool place to party.

"It's amazing how well-preserved these runes are after so many years," Bella breathed, lifting a hand to lightly brush over the air above a rune.

"These have been hidden away for quite some time. They're somewhat of a family secret," Rebekah told her in a conspiratorial whisper.

Bella looked instantly concerned. "Is it okay that you brought me here? I don't want you to get into any trouble…"

Even though Rebekah knew that Bella was the rare type of individual that genuinely cared about others, she was still surprised every time Bella expressed any sort of concern for her well-being. "Don't worry, it's not as much of a problem as you may think it is. These caves were discovered recently by Elena and her group of friends."

"Surprised half the town doesn't know about it then if they all know," Bella muttered, going back to staring intently at the walls.

"Oh, they do. My family still has some influence though so we've managed to keep most everyone away."

"Well, at least you're using your influence for a good cause."

Rebekah leaned against the wall near the entrance they had came through and continued to watch Bella as she studied each individual rune. Occasionally Bella would ask Rebekah if she knew what certain runes meant but for the most part, they spent the time in comfortable silence. Bella was happy for the chance to decompress from her stressful first week in Mystic Falls. She hadn't expected to find anything to be happy about when she came to Mystic Falls; she had fought her father tooth and nail when he told her that she was supposed to stay with the Forbes. The only reason Bella had even come here was because Charlie and practically begged her to go. She had felt so guilty for causing him so much pain and worry that she had reluctantly agreed to go to Virginia.

Meeting Rebekah had been an unexpected event. Bella had thought that her time at Mystic Falls High would be similar to her last few months at Forks High in that she would be the center of attention for a few days before becoming effectively invisible. Then she had run into Rebekah on her first day and, before she'd known it, had seemingly made a friend. She knew that Rebekah was likely only hanging out with her to annoy Caroline but she enjoyed spending time with her all the same.

Bella's stomach growled and she felt her face flush. She glanced back at Rebekah and saw her looking amused. "Guess I'm getting kind of hungry," Bella admitted.

Rebekah slipped her phone into her purse. "Want to go find something to eat?"

Bella nodded and stood up, brushing the dirt off her jeans before walking over to Rebekah and following her out of the caves and back into the forest. The bright afternoon sunlight blinded Bella for a moment and she stumbled. Rebekah grabbed her arm before she could fall and helped her find her balance.

"Sorry," Bella told her, blushing as she folded her arms over her chest.

"It's fine, seems to be a common habit of yours." Rebekah linked arms with Bella as they walked back to the car. "So, any ideas on what you would like to eat?"

"I could go for some Italian. Are there any good restaurants around here?"

Rebekah snorted. "The only edible food in the town is at the Grill and you've seen their menu; they're not exactly known for their 'fine dining'."

Bella frowned. "Oh. Too bad you can't come over to Caroline's house because they have a pretty nice kitchen."

"You cook?" Rebekah asked, impressed.

Bella blushed. "A little. My mom wasn't a good cook so I took over kitchen duties when I was old enough. I really like cooking though so it wasn't a big deal."

"Well, I am impressed. I can barely boil water for a cup of tea on my own let alone make anything resembling a meal."

"I'm sure that's not true," Bella replied as they reached the car and got in. "You probably just haven't had any good teachers."

Rebekah shook her head. "No, I just never found the need to learn how to. There was always someone else who could cook for me if I wanted something."

Bella bit her lip and nodded slowly as she thought about it. Rebekah knew that she was probably assuming that the family had a hired chef and not they had a tendency to compel humans to cook for them before draining them dry.

"What's wrong?" Rebekah asked when Bella hadn't said anything else for a minute.

"Nothing," Bella sighed. "Just thinking."

"Sounds serious," Rebekah told her. "What are you thinking about?"

Bella was quiet for a beat before she forced a smile and said, "Just trying to figure out where we can eat without running into anyone annoying."

Rebekah knew she was lying and tried to figure out the best way to get her to tell her the truth. It had been awhile since she had to coax someone into telling her what she wanted to know instead of just making them tell her but she knew it would take a bit of work to coax it out of her. Rebekah considered her options and then made a decision.

Bella was startled from her thoughts when Rebekah took an unexpected turn away from the main street and started driving away from downtown. "Where are we going?"

Rebekah turned to smile at her. "We're going to go to my home so that you can show off your cooking skills."

Bella was surprised; she knew that Rebekah's family kept to themselves and she was worried that they wouldn't be happy to see her at their home. "Are you sure that your brothers will be okay with me just showing up?"

"Yes," Rebekah told her confidently, hiding her concerns about Kol and Nik's reactions when she showed up with the newest Forbes. "I believe they are all looking forward to meeting you."

Rebekah honestly hoped that that wasn't true.


	5. Chapter 5

Bella followed Rebekah through the entryway, in complete awe of the Mikaelson's home. "Your house is huge," she informed her friend, who was laughing softly at Bella's expression.

"Well, the Mikaelson family is not known for being low-key." Rebekah was proud of her growing knowledge of current vernacular.

"Yeah," Bella said with a wry grin. "Kind of figured that out for myself."

Rebekah started down the front entryway, Bella at her heels. "The parlor is over there and the formal dining room is here," she told Bella, giving her a very quick tour as they headed towards the kitchen.

Straight in front of them were two open double doors and Rebekah turned right before them into another hallway. Bella stopped to gawk. "Is that a ballroom?"

Rebekah turned back to her and smiled. "Yes. We do so enjoy the occasional party."

Bella stared blankly at her. "Right."

They continued down the hall until Rebekah stopped in front of a door to her left, which she opened with a flourish. "Here is the kitchen! Everything you need should be in here. I think." Rebekah frowned, wondering if they should have stopped at the grocery store first.

Bella's jaw dropped in shock. "This kitchen is amazing…"

The kitchen was the larger than any Bella had ever seen; there were two fridges on either side of the room, a stove and sink on the farthest wall from them, and a large island in the middle of the room with another sink on one side of it. The island and all of the counters were marble top and all of the appliances looked to be top quality.

Rebekah was pleased at her reaction. "When Nik was building the house he made sure to have only the best of everything installed."

"Klaus built this place?" Bella asked, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"He helped renovate it before we moved in," Rebekah hastily corrected herself.

"Wow," Bella murmured, walking forward and letting her fingers drift atop the marble counter of the island. "I can't believe he installed all this when none of you even cook."

"I don't cook," Rebekah corrected her, perching herself on one of the stools placed around the island. "Nik and Elijah are both able to cook. Though, Elijah does cook more often than Nik."

"I would cook all the time if I had this kitchen," Bella informed her as she walked over to the stove and studied the spider burners.

"Well, depending on how impressive your meal is tonight, you may just earn yourself cooking rights to our kitchen," Rebekah teased as she sent a text to her brothers, informing them that Bella was having dinner at their house. It wouldn't do for them to come home and find her there with no warning.

"Guess I better bring my A-game then." Bella started grabbing the pots she would need from where they were hanging over the counter next to the stove. "I don't suppose you know where anything is in here, do you?"

"I do not," Rebekah informed her. "I can, however, tell you that all cooking utensils are located near the stove while food items are either in the fridge or the pantry." She pointed behind her to a closed door. "The refrigerator closest to the stove is the one that holds food."

"Alright then," Bella muttered as she walked over to the fridge and starting taking the things she would need out of it and placing it on the island. "I will figure out the lay of the land, so to speak, for myself. Just call me Dora the Explorer."

"Who?" asked Rebekah, trying to remember famous explorers so that she would know which one Bella was referring to.

Bella looked at her in surprise. "Dora the Explorer? It's a kids show? Little Spanish girl goes wandering around looking for things while teaching small children Spanish?" At Rebekah's continued look of confusion, Bella shook her head sadly. "I can't believe you never watched Dora the Explorer. What a sad childhood you must have had."

Rebekah couldn't think of anything to say to that though Bella hadn't been expecting a response and had already moved behind her to the pantry. "How does an artichoke heart and lemon pasta dish sound?" Bella called to her.

"Sounds delicious," Rebekah called back, responding to Nik's text that was warning her to keep an eye on Bella the entire time she was here so that she didn't wander anywhere she shouldn't be. "Do you need my help with anything?" she asked, trying to be polite.

"I'm good," Bella finally responded, walking out of the pantry with several items and setting them on the counter with her other ingredients. "I noticed some chicken thawing in the fridge. Do you think your brothers would mind if I used it for dinner?"

Rebekah set her phone down. "No, but do we really need them? Won't the pasta be enough for us?"

"I figured your brothers would want something a little more filling than just pasta."

"You don't need to make anything for them," Rebekah said, surprised at Bella's thoughtfulness. She couldn't help wondering how such a nice, thoughtful girl as Bella could be related to someone as shallow and selfish as Caroline.

"I don't mind," Bella reassured her, setting everything on the counter and organizing them into order of use. "I'd feel bad if I used your kitchen and your food without making enough for everybody."

Rebekah couldn't keep herself from smiling. "You don't have to but no will stop you if you want to make dinner for everyone. I'll let my brothers know."

Bella smiled back before turning and rummaging around for the pots she would need.

* * *

"Well, well, well," came a voice from the doorway to the kitchen.

Bella spun around in surprise. She had just finished the sauce for the pasta and had been about to check the chicken. Rebekah had left a few minutes before to put her things away in her room and Bella had been unaware that someone else was home.

Standing in the entryway was a tall, dark-haired man with sparkling brown eyes and a cocky grin. He somehow managed to have an air of sophistication about him even while wearing jeans and t-shirt and she could instantly tell that he was another one of Rebekah's brothers. She, once again, wondered how one family could have such spectacular genes.

"You must be the infamous Bella Swan."

When it didn't seem like he was going to say anymore, Bella cautiously responded. "I am. And you must be one of the infamous Mikaelson brothers."

His grin widened. "Glad to know my reputation proceeds me. Kol Mikaelson at your service," he told her with an ironic little bow.

Bella smile hesitantly back at him. "It's nice to meet you too."

Her response seemed to amuse him and she was instantly wary. He sauntered forward and leaned against a counter. "So, you're the little friend my dear sister managed to make. I must say, you were not what I was expecting." He looked her up and down intently and Bella squirmed.

"Oh, really?" she asked lightly, trying to pull his attention away from her. "What exactly were you expecting from a friend of Rebekah's?"

He dragged his eyes up her body and met her gaze. "Well, for starters, they are generally wearing much less clothing."

Bella flushed. She was saved from responding by Rebekah racing into the kitchen. "Leave her alone, Kol," she warned.

Kol just laughed. "Calm yourself, sister. I was just trying to get to know your new friend."

The oven timer went off then and Bella jumped. She turned away from Kol, glad for the excuse to put some distance between them and went over to the stove, giving the pasta a few stirs before grabbing the oven mitts and pulling out the chicken. After checking to make sure they were cooked thoroughly, Bella turned and announced, "The chickens done. We can eat in a few minutes after everything's cooled down."

"It smells delicious," Rebekah told her. She turned to her brother. "Will you be eating with us or are you going out?"

Kol seemed surprised and a little suspicious. "You're willingly inviting me to eat with you both? Did you poison the food?"

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "No, not this time. Bella made enough food for everyone; Nik and Elijah should be here shortly."

"I see," Kol stated, a hint of surprise in his tone.

Bella walked over to a cupboard Rebekah had pointed out earlier and began pulling out plates. "Do you guys want to eat in here or in the dining room?"

Both Rebekah and Kol grimaced. The last meal they had eaten in there had been as a family with their mother, the day before she decided to use a spell in order to kill them all. "Here is fine," Rebekah told her, walking over and taking the plates from her. "We'll get everything ready; you cooked, so it's the least we can do."

"Alright," Bella agreed. "Can you tell me where the bathroom is? I want to wash up before we eat."

"There's a small wash-closet across from the parlor," Rebekah informed her. "Do you want me to show you?"

"No, I'll probably be fine." Bella walked out of the kitchen, carefully skirting around Kol. "If I'm not back in five minutes, then I most likely got lost in your maze of a house. Be sure to send out a search party."

Rebekah laughed and even Kol gave a small chuckle. "Just start shouting if you can't find your way back and we'll come get you."

Kol studied Rebekah as she set out the plates and went to collect glasses and utensils. "So, baby sister, what are you planning?"

"I don't know what you mean, Kol."

"Come now, you can't honestly expect me to believe that you're playing nice just for the fun of it."

Rebekah sighed in frustration. "She's my friend, Kol. I know it's been awhile since you've had one of those but please keep up."

Kol flashed in front of her, halting her movements. "You don't have friends, none of us do. Our dear brother doesn't approve of us having a life outside of him," he sneered.

"Yes, but Bella's different. He believes he can use her against the Salvatore's and that little witch, along with using her to further his standing with Caroline. It won't work," she said, with a small shrug. "But it means that he won't be as… disagreeable to Bella's presence."

They heard the door open and Bella's footsteps coming back, while simultaneously hearing their brothers approach. "I wonder what those two were up to," Rebekah murmured. She hurriedly finished setting the table moments before Bella walked back in.

"I see you managed to make your way back," Kol said with a smirk. "Well done."

"Thank you," said Bella primly. "It was touch and go there for awhile but I made it."

Rebekah smiled and then the front door opened. "Hello," came Klaus' voice.

Moments later, Klaus and another man walked into the kitchen. Bella studied him for a moment, taking in his short brown hair, intelligent eyes, and kind smile. "You must be Isabella," he spoke. "I am Elijah Mikaelson." She shivered at the sound of his voice.

She heard Kol chuckle and turned to glare at both him and a grinning Rebekah before turning back. "I usually go by Bella."

"I wouldn't bother, Bella," Klaus informed her with a boyish grin. "Elijah only refers to people by their given names."

Kol and Rebekah also smiled while Elijah gave a long-suffering sigh. Bella stared in amazement at the family; how the heck were they blessed with such good genes? _Damn,_ she couldn't help thinking. _I didn't think an actual family could just naturally have so many attractive people in it._

While the Cullen's had all been attractive, they were both supernatural and not actually related. That wasn't the case with the Mikaelson's and Bella could now better understand Rebekah's frustration when she talked about people being nice to her in order to get to her brothers.

Bella froze slightly when she realized that she had just thought about the Cullen's, however indirectly, without feeling like she was going to fall apart. When had she stopped feeling so distraught? When had she been able to breathe easily again?

"Bella?" Rebekah had stepped up beside her without Bella having noticed.

She realized that she had blanked out for a moment and felt her face flush. "Sorry," she said. "Just got distracted for a moment."

Rebekah studied her for a moment, seeming concerned, and Bella could feel her brothers also watching, which caused her face to turn even redder. "I'm good, really," she insisted. She walked over to the stove and grabbed the pan of pasta, carefully bringing it over to the island and setting it down in-between the plates.

Turning back to the stove, she was surprised to see Elijah already there and was bringing the chicken over. "Thanks," Bella said, with a small smile.

He smiled back at her. "It is the least I can do; thank you for cooking dinner for us."

"Yes," said Klaus. "It was very kind of you." He carefully studied Bella's expression.

She shrugged, self-consciously, and sat down next to Rebekah. "It's no big deal, I used to do all the cooking so I'm used to it."

"You're parents don't cook?" Elijah asked, reaching over to serve both himself, Rebekah, and Bella.

She blushed again and muttered, "Thanks," before answering his question. "My mom can't cook and the only thing my dad is good at making is bacon, eggs, and fish."

"So," Kol interrupted, grabbing a piece of chicken and then serving himself a bit of pasta. "Rebekah mentioned that your parents are divorced and that you were living with your dad."

"Yes," Bella answered, feeling wary. "My mom remarried a minor league baseball player and wanted to travel with him so I moved in with my dad during my junior year."

"Why'd he ship you off here, then?" Kol asked, before taking a bite of his food.

Bella froze at his words. "Kol!" snapped Rebekah.

"If you are going to be rude," stated Elijah, calmly. "Then you can leave."

Klaus, however, stayed silent, studying Bella's expression. He had seen a brief flash of pain, grief, and, most importantly, the broken look of the betrayed before she had shuttered her eyes. He couldn't help but feel a sort of kinship with the small brunette; the look in her eyes was one he had seen many times before when he caught sight of his own gaze in the mirror.

Kol rolled his eyes at his siblings. "I'm just trying to get to know Bella better. Besides, I know you were both wondering about that as well."

"While that may be true," spoke Klaus, turning away from Bella to catch his younger brothers attention. "We, at least, have the decency to allow Bella to tell us her story when she is ready."

Surprise flitted across his siblings faces before they settled into a neutral expression. "Well," Rebekah spoke, trying to ease the tension in the room. "Kol never was interested in playing nice growing up."

"I was an angel," Kol protested. "Klaus was the real rebel."

Klaus shrugged unashamedly. "I was just doing my best to keep things interesting."

"Is that what you call it?" Elijah asked. "Others might say you were a terror."

"What can I say? I've always preferred to follow my instincts." Klaus caught Bella's eyes and smirked, a small rush of pride sweeping through him when she flushed a shade of red darker than she had when she'd met Elijah.

Once she'd recovered her voice, Bella couldn't help but laugh at the siblings good-natured teasing. "It must have been nice," she commented when the others turned to look at her. "Always having someone around, I mean. I'm an only child and I always wondered what it would be like to have siblings."

"Depends on what age you are," Klaus commented, taking a sip of wine that Bella hadn't even noticed had been poured. "Rebekah was the baby girl of the family so she got away with quite a bit growing up."

"No," Rebekah corrected. "I was well behaved growing up, which meant I got into less trouble than you lot."

Bella couldn't remember the last time she had had this much fun during a meal. She and her mother had rarely eaten together and when they had Renee had spent the entire time talking about herself and her dad generally preferred to eat in silence. Even the Cullen's hadn't been good company since they always just sat there and watched her eat, which had always made her feel very uncomfortable.

She was still slightly surprised at the ease in which she was able to think about the Cullen's without falling apart. While she was still in Forks, even just a thought that brushed against the memory of the family that left her behind would leave her in an agonized state. Now, the pain was gone and in it's place was a slowly simmering rage. For now though, Bella pushed aside her thoughts about the Cullen's and her changing feelings towards them and focused instead on her enjoying her time with her new, and probably her first true, friend.

* * *

After they had finished eating, the girls had been forced out of kitchen and into the informal sitting room in order to relax while the boys took care of the dishes. Well, Bella had been forced out; Rebekah had been more than willing to allow the boys to take care of the clean-up.

" _You were kind enough to make dinner for us," Elijah had told Bella with a charming grin. "It is only fair that we take care of the dishes."_

Bella had blushed but allowed herself to be led out of the kitchen by Rebekah. Rebekah had instantly sat down on a large sofa, gently pulling Bella along to sit down beside her. "I hope Kol didn't upset you earlier," she said softly and Bella looked at her in surprise.

"It's fine. It's not like he was wrong," Bella responded with a grimace. "My dad really did just kind of ship me off here. I was surprised Liz ended up agreeing though, she sounded like she was really against me coming when I heard them talking on the phone one night."

Despite knowing exactly why the sheriff wouldn't have wanted Bella to come, Rebekah still felt indignant on behalf of her friend, who she could tell was more upset than she let on. "Well I for one am glad she did," Rebekah stated, flipping her hair over one shoulder and smirking. "You're pleasant enough company and Caroline always turns an enjoyable shade of red when she sees us speaking."

Her words worked as she had hoped, causing Bella to laugh. "Yeah, the last time I've seen Caroline this angry on a regular basis is when I stole all her dolls when we were seven and held them for ransom until she would give me my book back."

Rebekah laughed. "What book did she steal?"

Bella suddenly had a mischievous glint in her eyes. "I can't remember. What I do remember, is that I had finished it on the plane and was reading a different book by the time Caroline stole it from me."

"If you weren't reading it then why did you steal something of hers in return?"

"It was the principle of the thing," she informed her blond friend loftily. "She was trying to get back at me for not playing dolls with her so I took them in order to teach her a lesson." Rebekah grinned at the mental image of a young Bella stealing Caroline toys with a righteous indignation. "I gave them back to her in the same condition I took them in," Bella tried to defend herself. "Mostly."

"What do you mean by mostly?" Rebekah inquired, already sure she was going to enjoy the ending of the story.

"Well, I wanted to make sure she knew better than to ever try and steal a book from me and I figured a physical reminder would be the best way to go."

"What did you do to the dolls?" Rebekah saw Klaus and Kol standing in the doorway, obviously listening to their conversation.

"Well, I took a blond doll that was one of Caroline's favorites, not her actual favorite though because I'm not that mean, and attempted to… burn some of its hair off."

Bella started at the bark of laughter that came from behind her and had looked over to see Klaus smirking at her. "I'm guessing that attempt didn't go quite as planned, love."

She flushed again and wondered how long she'd have to be around them before her face ended up becoming permanently red. "Yeah. I got the idea because my mom had gone to get her hair done and somehow part of it had burned off and she looked terrible. I tried to recreate the same look on the doll but failed. Things just got out of hand so fast!" Bella insisted as the siblings all started laughing.

"Considering how accident-prone you are it's lucky you didn't end up burning yourself," Rebekah had commented after she'd managed to stop giggling.

"That's exactly what Jeremy said afterwards," Bella said with a grin as she leaned back against the edge of the couch.

"Jeremy?" asked Kol. "Jeremy Gilbert?"

"Yeah," Bella nodded. "You know him?"

"No, but I have had the dubious honor of meeting his sister and her boyfriends." Kol strode into the room and sat down next to Bella, placing himself far enough away so as to be proper but still close enough to make her feel slightly unsettled. He enjoyed how open her expressions were, though his annoyance with his older brother stopped him from fully appreciating her irritation. Klaus had informed Kol that he was to go to Colorado and keep an eye on the youngest Gilbert, since he appeared to be closest in age to him and hadn't met him before. Kol was still feeling wary towards his brother after having being locked in a box for over 100 years and was unwilling to go against him. Yet.

Rebekah rolled her eyes at her brothers antics but decided it would be best just to ignore him as long as he wasn't truly bothering Bella. "Jeremy hasn't been around recently; I believe he went to stay with family friends."

Bella's shoulders slumped. "Yeah, that's what Caroline said. Though, I think it's weird that he just up and left in the middle of the semester. It seems like it was a pretty sudden decision and that's really not like Jeremy." She bit her lip slightly in thought before sighing and changing the subject. "You said boyfriends," she turned to look at Kol. "Is Elena dating more than one guy? Because, if she is, then I would have thought Caroline would be going on and on about it."

"No idea," Kol shrugged, copying Bella by slumping back into the couch. Bella felt slightly jealous at how elegant he looked doing so, while she probably just looked tired. "I believe she was dating the youngest Salvatore brother but has recently been spotted out and about with the eldest."

Bella looked at Rebekah with raised eyebrows, not sure whether or not Kol was telling the truth. "He's right," Rebekah confirmed. "Though she and Stefan claim to not be together anymore so it's possible she's not dating both of them and has instead traded one in for the other."

Unable to hide her grimace Bella commented, "That's kind of gross. And super weird."

A ringing noise suddenly sounded and then Elijah appeared in the doorway with Bella's bag. "I believe that's yours," he informed her, walking into the room and handing her the bag. Bella was startled by how quickly he had gotten to the room before brushing it off, assuming that he had already been coming here with her bag when her cell started ringing.

She dug around for a moment before pulling out an iPhone and groaned when she saw who was calling. "It's Caroline." Bella reluctantly dragged herself off the couch and stepped into the hallway, trying to spare the family from having to hear whatever crap her cousin was about to spill.

"Hello?" she answered, obviously unhappy.

" _Where the hell are you?"_ Caroline demanded abruptly.

"Out. Why?"

" _Are you with Rebekah? You need to come home right now."_

The Originals eavesdropping were as unimpressed with Caroline's tone as Bella seemed to be. "Does it matter? And why? I don't have to be back yet."

" _Of course it does! You know you're not supposed to be hanging out with her! And you need to come home because Mom wants to talk to you."_

"Was I not clear enough for you at lunch? I don't care what you think, I don't care about whatever Rebekah or her family did to piss you off, and I'm not going to do whatever you say! She's my friend and it's my life so knock it off! Also, why does Liz want to talk to me?" At Caroline's silence, Bella groaned. "Please tell me you didn't run off and tattle on me for not playing with you. You're such a child!"

" _I'm just trying to look out for you!"_ Caroline insisted. _"And she's concerned too! She doesn't think you should be hanging out with Rebekah either!"_

"Considering how clear she made her opinion on my coming here in the first place," Bella retorted, voice even and hard. "You'll forgive me if I'm less than concerned about what she thinks. And since you didn't get home till around two in the morning the last few nights, I'm going to assume that's my curfew so I'll be home by then. Bye."

Bella walked back into the room a moment later and threw herself back onto the sofa with a huff. "Well, I assume Caroline was her normal charming self?" Rebekah finally asked.

"I don't know if the problem is that she was dropped on her head or if it's that she didn't get dropped on her head enough. Clearly she's lacking in sense but I'm unsure if that's because it's been knocked out of her or because she didn't get any sense knocked into her."

Kol snorted in amusement while Klaus just frowned, both entertained and also annoyed at hearing someone he cared for spoken of in such a manner. "Well, isn't that an interesting mental image. Though I am more curious about what was said during lunch." At Bella's blush, Kol smirked and leaned in closer. "My my, whatever you said must be quite embarrassing for you to turn such a lovely shade of red."

Both Elijah and Klaus seemed amused at their younger brother actions while Rebekah just glared at him. "It was nothing," Bella tried to act indifferent. "Just something I said to prove a point to Caroline."

"Well," Kol drawled, eyes sparking in pleasure and Bella knew that she had just neatly stepped into whatever trap Kol had set. "I, for one, am more than willing to 'screw around' with you in order to get your point across to your dear cousin, though I cannot speak for my brothers."

Elijah raised an eyebrow in surprise at Kol's statement and Klaus was about to tell him off when he noticed the mortification, and not confusion as he would have expected, on Bella's face.

"You told him?" Bella croaked out to Rebekah, wishing she could find a nice deep hole somewhere close-by to die in.

Rebekah winced and gave her friend a guilty look. "I'm so sorry; I forgot that I was on the phone with him when I went to find you in the cafeteria. I had thought he had hung up before I reached you."

"There's no need to be embarrassed," Kol interjected, a delighted grin on his face at getting such a reaction from the pretty brunette. "It's very understandable that you would find us Mikaelson's to be an attractive lot. Many before you have felt the same and have had the same… desires towards us. Though generally they meet all of us first before declaring such a course of action."

Bella stared at the coffee table, wondering if there was enough room for her to slink under it and never come out again.

Elijah seemed to understand the direction of her thoughts. "Unfortunately, hiding will do you no good. In fact, I believe both of my brothers would find it even more amusing if you were to attempt to escape in such a way and then you would be facing both of their teasing and not just Kol's."

Kol couldn't hold back his laughter at the thought of Bella hiding underneath the low table in front of the couch and his siblings looked at him in varying states of shock. None of them could remember Kol demonstrating such open happiness since back when they were humans. Even centuries after they had turned, their brother had still been full of rage at what had been taken from him and had, in turn, expressed himself through a trail of bodies and mayhem. To see him truly enjoying himself just through interacting with a human was unexpected.

"Well," started Bella, trying to be flippant. "Since hiding is no longer an option, I guess I'll just have to settle for making an abrupt exit." She rose off the couch and turned to Rebekah. "You drove us here and, since I have absolutely no idea of where we are, I will need you to take me home."

Rebekah laughed, relieved that Bella seemed more embarrassed than upset. "That's probably for the best. I'm assuming you would like to take the longest route possible back so as to not make it seem as though Caroline's call had any effect whatsoever on your decision?"

"You would be correct."

Shaking her head in amusement, Rebekah came to stand next to Bella. "Well then, let's be off."

Bella nodded at Klaus before turning to look at Elijah. "It was very nice to meet you," she told him, tone conveying her sincerity and Elijah smiled back at her. She then turned to Kol. "I think it would be for the better for my self-esteem if you and I don't have any sort of contact for awhile."

Kol just smirked at her, silently letting her know that he made no promises. Bella sighed before following Rebekah out of the room and the brothers heard the front door open and close moments later.

"I can see why you and Rebekah have found her so intriguing," Kol commented to the hybrid. "There's something about her that's different."

"I agree," Elijah joined, sipping from a glass of Klaus' bourbon. "Her nature is unlike that of other humans."

"That," agreed Kol. "And the fact that she smells _divine._ "

"She is off limits," Klaus warned his unpredictable younger brother. "There is something unusual about her and until we figure what that is, you are not to touch her."

Kol rolled his eyes. "You already said that last night; I don't need the reminder. Besides," his voice turned bitter now, the previous ease surrounding him gone. "It's not as though I'll be here long enough to get to her now that you're sending me away to keep an eye on baby Gilbert."

"I believe our most pressing concern," Elijah interjected before Klaus could say or do anything to upset Kol futher. "Involves the unusual scar on her wrist. You noticed it, did you not?" he directed to Klaus.

"I did," Klaus acknowledged. "I've never seen one on a human before."

"One must wonder how she survived," Elijah contemplated.

"More importantly," Kol spoke. "How exactly did she get involved with any Cold Ones in the first place? They're not exactly a human-friendly lot, now are they?"

"Hopefully Rebekah finds that out quickly enough," Klaus said as he stood to leave the room. "The last thing we need is a group of Cold Ones showing up in Mystic Falls. Things are tense enough as it is and I have no desire to have to deal with any false vampires."

 **A/N: I am so sorry that it took so long for me to post this! This chapter wasn't flowing as easily as previous ones did and then life got in the way. Also, I got distracted with other story ideas and currently have a number of other projects in the works; including a Bella/Elijah story, a Hermione/Once Upon a Time story, and a Hermione/Lord of the Rings. I won't be posting any new stories until I've written a few chapters first so I don't know how soon any of those will be up but something to look forward to. ;) Have no fear though, for I've already begun chapter 6 of this story and it's coming along pretty nicely so there shouldn't be another horribly long wait for that one, even with my other stories.**

 **Let me know what you think!**


	6. Chapter 6

Rebekah pulled up outside the Forbes' house the next morning, looking forward to a day of shopping. While she knew Bella didn't really enjoy buying clothes, she simply couldn't allow her friend to walk around in the same few outfits she had been able to take with her from Washington. From what she had been told, the weather in Mystic Falls was far different from the cold temperatures in the the northeast so Bella had already been expecting to have to buy new things once she was settled in but she had seemed to want to put it off as long as possible. Rebekah, however, had refused to take no for an answer.

" _You and I are going to go shopping tomorrow," Rebekah had informed Bella, ignoring her friends protests as she turned onto the Forbes' street._

" _It's fine," Bella had insisted. "You don't need to waste your Saturday with me when you could be out having fun."_

 _Rebekah had thrown her an amused glance. "Shopping is fun to me, remember? Besides, would you rather I go with you or Caroline?" Bella paused at that and Rebekah pressed on. "You know she'll want to go with you and where she goes, the rest of her friends are likely to follow. Do you really want to deal with them all day?"_

 _Bella reluctantly shook her head and sighed. "Fine. You win. I'll allow you to accompany me on my torturous quest for clothes."_

" _You know, most people enjoy shopping." Rebekah turned into the driveway and put the car in park, her headlights lighting up the front of the house and she could see Sheriff Forbes peeking out the window at them._

" _Haven't you realized?" Bella returned, opening her door and preparing to get out of the car. "I'm not most people." She hopped out and leaned down to grab her backpack. "Text me when you get home."_

 _Rebekah smiled, pleased at her friend's genuine concern for her well-being. "I will. I'll also text you when I'm on my way to pick you up tomorrow. Does around 10 work for you?"_

" _Sounds good. Bye!" Bella shut the door and walked up to the house. Rebekah could hear Caroline's high-pitched voice from the car and she winced in sympathy before reversing out of the driveway and heading home._

Before she had even come to a complete stop, Bella was already out the front door and almost running to the car. Rebekah watched as Caroline appeared in the doorway and silently glared at her before throwing a concerned glance at her cousins back. Rebekah frowned, taking in the drawn look on Bella's face and the bags under her eyes.

"Are you alright?" she asked once Bella was in the car and putting on her seatbelt.

"I'm fine," Bella responded automatically and Rebekah just stared back at her, expression clearly stating her doubt.

Bella sighed, immediately dropping all pretenses. "I'm just tired. I didn't get to sleep till late last night because Caroline and Liz both joined forces to annoy me and I wasn't able to sleep well afterwards."

Rebekah could sense that there was more to it than that but she also knew that she shouldn't push. It was plain to see that Bella hadn't been all that well when she'd first arrived in Mystic Falls but she had slowly gotten better over the past week and Rebekah was willing to let Bella tell her what had happened when she was ready. It was one of the first times Rebekah could remember being willing to wait for something she wanted instead of just taking it immediately. Even if Bella hadn't been able to resist compulsion though, Rebekah still would have let Bella come to her on her own time. She felt as though this was her first chance to have a real friend and she wouldn't muck it up by pushing Bella.

"If you want, you can try and take a brief rest; the mall we're going to is a bit of a drive and I'd prefer you be awake while we're shopping, though I imagine I could trick you into buying quite a few things if you continued on in this state."

Normally, Bella wouldn't even entertain the idea of falling asleep around anyone other than family because of her intense nightmares but she was so tired and she felt so comfortable around Rebekah that Bella could feel herself already starting to nod off.

"You sure?" Bella forced herself to ask. "I don't want you to feel like I'm ignoring you and being a bad friend."

Rebekah glanced over at her and smiled. "Of course. After all, you'll need to be well-rested for our day."

Bella's response was a cross between a sigh and a groan before she settled back into her seat and quickly fell asleep.

Rebekah turned her music on, relieved when it came on at a low volume and not blaring as had happened on previous days when she'd turned it on. She wasn't positive what had happened, but she thought it was most likely Kol's fault.

As a soft jazz number filled the car, Bella shifted slightly and Rebekah glanced over to see Bella frowning before her face scrunched up and she let out a soft moan.

"Bella?" Rebekah reached out and gently grabbed her friends arm. Bella instantly seemed to settle at her touch, her expression clearing and she fell into a more restful sleep.

Rebekah frowned in thought. Was it the music that had upset Bella? It didn't seem to be bothering her now, Bella had stayed asleep even after Rebekah had pulled her hand away. It had almost seemed as though she was having a nightmare but for her to fall into a deep enough sleep to dream so quickly... Rebekah wondered how long it had been since her friend had gotten a full night's worth of rest. Glancing over at Bella's now-covered scar, Rebekah was almost positive that whatever it was that scared Bella so much must be connected to it. A surge of anger scorched through her at the idea of anyone hurting her friend and she knew that, once Bella trusted her enough to tell her what happened, there would be nowhere on Earth those wretched excuses for vampires could hide from her.

Bella woke just as Rebekah pulled into the parking lot of a mall in Richmond. She glanced around blearily before glancing over at the clock on the dashboard. "Crap!" Her eyes were wide with shock. "I can't believe I slept that long! I'm so sorry!"

The guilty look on her face made Rebekah laugh. "No need for apologies! I could tell you were exhausted and it's no fun hanging out with someone who's dead on their feet."

"Still, I'm sorry I wasn't very good company. I promise to be better for the rest of the day." Bella was glad that Rebekah wasn't annoyed with her but she still felt bad. She honestly couldn't believe that she had slept for the hour-long drive, let alone the fact that she hadn't had any nightmares. Bella hadn't had slept so peacefully since before Edward had left and she wondered if it was because of Rebekah that the nightmares had stayed away or if she was just that exhausted.

They got out of the car and headed into the mall, Bella trying to appear cheerful while forcefully shoving the memories of previous shopping trips with Alice away. Even before the pixie vampire had come into her life, Bella hadn't had a whole lot of good experiences shopping and a part of her was dreading this. She could already tell by the way Rebekah walked into the mall and immediately headed into a designer store that she was an experienced shopper and Bella wondered how challenging it was going to be to keep up.

As soon as they walked in, a salesperson walked over to them. "Welcome back, Ms. Mikaelson," she greeted. Bella was surprised that Rebekah had been recognized so quickly considering the fact that she said her family had only recently moved into the area, but assumed that Rebekah just visited often enough, and had bought enough, for her to be known on sight. "Is there anything we can help you with?"

"No," Rebekah responded coolly, and Bella couldn't help thinking that her friend acted how she thought a privileged aristocrat would. "My friend and I will just be browsing for now."

The other blond nodded. "Of course. Please let us know if there's anything we can do to assist you." She gave both girls a smile before walking away.

Rebekah linked arms with Bella and led her over to a small selection of tops. "What do you think of these?"

Bella couldn't help but grimace at the sequined and striped tops. "Uh..."

"Not a fan?" Rebekah grabbed a shirt and studied it with a critical eye. "Neither am I. What clothes do you usually like to wear?"

Bella shrugged. It was the first time someone had actually asked her what kind of things she liked while shopping instead of just handing or buying her clothes that they claimed she'd look cute in and she wasn't sure how to respond. Finally, she answered, "I'm not really a fan of things that are super fitted. Not super baggy, you know, but not skin tight. I also don't like mini-skirts or shorts that barely cover your butt; I'm always worried a strong breeze will come by."

Rebekah thought for a moment before brightening. "Well then, you are in luck because I think I know the perfect shop for you." She linked arms with Bella again and led her out of the store without a backwards glance.

"First," Rebekah told her as she led her up to the second floor of the mall. "We are going to get you some nicer things since all I've seen you wearing up till now are jeans and plain shirts. Afterwards, we'll go get some more relaxed items for you."

"Okay," Bella answered warily. While Rebekah was the opposite of Alice in almost every way possible, Bella still couldn't help but be concerned over where they were heading. The word 'perfect' had been used all to loosely the past year in relation to her.

When they arrived at a small, vintage style clothing shop, Bella couldn't hide her surprise. She'd been expecting Rebekah to take her to another high-end shop but she definitely preferred the vibe of this place as they walked in.

"Hi!" a tall, willowy woman with purple hair greeted. "How's it going?"

"Good," Bella responded with a grin. "How are you?"

"I'm great! Is this your first time shopping here?" The girls nodded. "Well then, feel free to look around and let me know if you need any help; my name is Angie."

She went back to looking at something on her tablet and Bella was glad that she didn't feel the need to hover over them.

The girls started wandering around the store and stopped to look at a dark blue dress with fishnet sleeves and a blue belt. "This is really cute," Bella commented, unable to keep the surprise from her tone; she hadn't expected to find something she actually liked on this trip, let alone a dress.

"I agree." Rebekah checked the sizes on them and pulled out one for Bella. "You should try it on."

"Alright," Bella agreed, and took the dress from her.

"I can start a rack for you if you want," Angie offered, coming over to the girls. "That way you don't have to carry everything around until you're ready to start trying things on."

"That would be great, thanks!" Bella handed the dress over before continuing to wander around with Rebekah.

In the end, Bella ended up finding about 6 dresses to try on in addition to a number of nice tops and a few skirts. "How did you manage to talk me into trying all these all?"

Rebekah smirked at her as she looked over the small selection of shoes in the back of the store. "I didn't have to do anything. As soon as you saw all those dresses had pockets you fell in love with them on your own."

Bella rolled her eyes, knowing she was right, before heading into the dressing room. "Don't get your hopes up, I doubt any of these will look good on me anyway."

Rebekah glowered at the curtained off dressing room. "Well I'm betting you're going to look spectacular so come out once you're changed so that you can be judged properly."

"Lovely word choice there. Can't wait to be judged." Bella came out a minute later wearing a simple black dress with crossed straps in the front that formed a choker around her neck and a skirt that came right above her knees. "So, what do you think?" Bella asked her, shifting uncomfortably as she waited for Rebekah's approval.

"You look fantastic," Rebekah told her, heart clenching slightly at the wary look she'd seen in Bella's eyes. She'd known Bella hadn't had much enjoyment with previous shopping trips but this seemed like more than that. "What do you think though? Because if you don't like it then there's no reason to buy it."

Bella turned to look at herself in the floor-length mirror outside the dressing rooms. "I really like it," she admitted, smoothing her hands over the soft fabric. "The top is really cute and I like how long it is." She studied her reflection for a moment longer before turning back to Rebekah. "It's not really practical though, is it? I mean, it's not like I'd wear it anywhere so it'd kind of be a waste to buy it."

"Does there need to be a reason to get dressed up?" Rebekah countered. "If you like it, you should buy it. You can wear it when we go out for dinner in the evening or if you have a date. It's perfect for almost anything." At Bella's continued hesitance, Rebekah stated, "You're getting that dress."

"Whatever you say, Bekah," Bella sassed, almost relieved that Rebekah had taken that decision out of her hands. She knew she would have talked herself out of buying it otherwise and was grateful for Rebekah's decisive attitude. Bella turned back into the dressing room, completely missing the surprise on her friend's face.

In the end, Bella ended up getting almost everything she'd tried on. She had not, however, ended up paying for any of them. By the time she had finished changing back and brought her items up to the counter, Rebekah was signing the receipt and handing it back to Angie.

"You didn't have to do that!" Bella protested, instantly feeling guilty.

"I wanted to," Rebekah informed her, taking the last of her items from her and placing them into a bag Angie had handed her before ushering Bella out of the store. At Bella's continued objections, she sighed and said, "Bella, you saw where I live. My family isn't exactly hurting for money. Besides," she turned to Bella with a smirk. "I used Nik's card to pay for everything, so it's not like I used my own money. And he owed me anyway so this is just him paying me back."

Bella wanted to continue arguing with her but knew it was pointless. While the situation did remind her somewhat of when Alice would buy clothes for her, she knew that this was different. For starters, Rebekah had actually let Bella pick out her clothes instead of pushing things on her because she saw how great she'd look in them. And it wasn't like Rebekah had bought all these from a super expensive store; she taken Bella's tastes into account and found a store she'd be able to shop in.

"Thank you," Bella finally whispered and Rebekah smiled gently at her.

"You're welcome."

* * *

"So, tell me about Matt."

They were sitting in a small café a little while later after having stopped at another store for Bella to get what Rebekah had deemed as "boring" clothes.

Rebekah sighed. "What about him?"

"What happened?" Bella had been wondering for a while what had occurred between the beautiful blond and the All-American Quarterback but hadn't been able to bring herself to ask.

"I suppose you could say the timing was never right," Rebekah answered, thinking of how first his friend daggered her and then her brother hurt him. "Now he doesn't want anything to do with me; I suppose he thinks I'm too much drama."

Bella snorted. "Yes, because I'm sure his relationships with Elena and Caroline were so low-key."

Rebekah frowned, unaware that Matt had dated Elena. "How long did he and Elena date for?"

"I think Caroline said they dated freshman and sophomore year before they broke up." Bella was staring down at her cup of tea and missed the look on Rebekah's face.

"I see," she murmured, and it finally all made sense to her. She'd always wondered about the look she'd see on Matt's face whenever he thought no one was looking. Now she realized it was because he was in love with someone who'd never love him back and she felt a surge of pain at once again not being a first choice.

"Rebekah?" She looked up to meet Bella's concerned gaze. "What's wrong? Did I say something?"

When she opened her mouth to reassure her, what came out was, "You called me Bekah earlier."

Bella's eyebrows furrowed in confusion before she remembered. "Oh!" Her face flushed. "I'm sorry! I should have asked. I'll try to remember not to-"

"It's fine!" Rebekah interrupted. "I like it. My name can be a bit long at times."

"Are you sure?" While Bella preferred people call her by her nickname, she didn't want to annoy Rebekah by calling her by Bekah without asking.

"Of course," she assured her before taking a sip of her coffee. "Now, what about you?"

"What about me?"

Rebekah bit her lip, trying to find the right words. "I feel like there's something you're not telling me, something that happened to you before you came to Mystic Falls." Bella stiffened. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I just wanted you to know that I'm willing to listen."

Bella carefully set her cup down, hands shaking. She wanted to tell Rebekah but at the same time, she felt as though saying what happened to her would make it too real for her to deal with. A hand on her arm made her look up to see Rebekah giving her a small smile. "You don't have to tell me, I'm sorry I asked."

It was quiet for a moment before Bella spoke. "His name was Edward Cullen." Saying the name still made her flinch but at least the all-consuming pain in her chest had stopped. "I had just moved to Forks and we had Biology together. We dated for awhile but then his family moved and we broke up." There. That didn't sound so pathetic.

Edward Cullen… that name sounded familiar to Rebekah but for the life of her, she couldn't remember why.

"Was he your first boyfriend?" she asked. She assumed he was, seeing as how innocent Bella seemed to be.

"Yeah," Bella whispered, fighting off tears. Her first and her last most likely. After all, she was a mess. Why would anyone else want her?

Rebekah could almost hear what Bella was thinking and she felt a surge of the anger. She may not have known exactly what Edward Cullen had done but she would make damn sure he suffered for it.

"Well, we'll just have to find someone better for you, won't we?" Rebekah stood and pulled Bella up with her. "We'll have to look outside of Mystic Falls, of course, since I wouldn't want to subject you to any of the idiots there but I'm sure we can find someone good enough for you."

Bella gave a chocked laugh. "Sure."

They collected their bags and wandered to another store that Rebekah insisted they go into. Bella was quiet for a bit as they browsed, but Rebekah made sure to fill the silence with cheerful, light stories that eventually pulled the brunette from her dark thoughts. It wasn't long before Bella was laughing at one of Rebekah's many embarrassing tales about her brothers as she picked out clothes for Rebekah to try on.

By the time they pulled up at the Mikaelson's residence, it was early evening and Bella was still confused as to how she had more bags than Bekah. Once she had become more familiar with her style, Bekah had been able to find a variety of outfits that Bella would like in every store they went to. It was one of the easiest and most enjoyable shopping trips that Bella had ever gone on, though how much Bekah had spent on her still made her uncomfortable.

Bella had been very uncomfortable letting her friend spend so much money on her since it made her feel as though she was taking advantage of her- or more accurately Klaus. She'd found, however, that it was nearly impossible to tell Rebekah no when she put her mind to something- which was why she was now wondering how she was going to get all her stuff out of the car and into her room without Caroline seeing and making obnoxious comments. So, basically, she was hoping for the impossible.

Rebekah knew what she was thinking and offered, "I figured you would rather leave some of your things here so that you don't have to bring it all back with you at once."

"You are a saint and I adore you," Bella sighed with relief.

She laughed. "I believe you're just easy to please, but I'll take the compliment."

They got out of the car and grabbed all of Rebekah's bags and some of Bella's before heading into the house. "So, what're you up to tomorrow?" Bella asked.

"Not much. I have a meeting with the Mayor to discuss some of the towns history." _Trying to find the one weapon that could kill our family._

"Trying to learn more about your family history?" Bella asked, curiosity clear in her tone. The one thing that had always impressed her about Mystic Falls was at how well-documented the towns history was. There were records on almost everything and the town always did its best to keep its history alive through the many celebrations and traditions they carried out every year.

"Yes, though it's difficult since our ancestors were here so long ago."

Klaus came down the stairs and frowned when he saw them standing in the entryway with all their bags. "Well, look who's back. Let me guess, you spent an obscene amount of my money on items you don't actually need."

Bella looked down and shuffled guiltily as Rebekah rolled her eyes at her older brother. "For your information, most of these are for Bella. I felt she was desperately in need of an updated wardrobe now that she's here."

His eyebrows rose in surprise as he turned to look at Bella. He couldn't help but be charmed as he took in her guilty countenance and smiled gently at her when she looked up at him. "Well then, I suppose that's alright. Better you than her; I don't believe my dear sister has any room left in her closet at this point and I refuse to allow her to expand it."

Shoulders slumping in relief when she saw he wasn't angry, Bella replied, "I will say that Bekah is quite the accomplish, and aggressive, shopper."

"I prefer to think that I just know what I want," Rebekah replied with a wink. "If you want to just leave your bags here, I'll move them when I get back. Your phone is ringing again and I'd rather get you back before the Sheriff sends out a warrant for my arrest."

"Not willing to get arrested for the pleasure of my company," Bella mused. "I'll remember that."

With a wave goodbye, both girls headed back outside. Klaus looked down at the mess of bags on the floor before making a small sound of annoyance and collecting the clothes, flashing upstairs to drop them in Rebekah's room. He returned downstairs quickly and settled into the living room with a sketch pad to wait for Rebekah.

"Does the name Edward Cullen sound familiar to you?" she asked him as soon as she came back minutes later.

Klaus raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Yes, as it should to you. That's the name of one of Carlisle Cullen's coven; the group of Cold Ones that enjoys playing house. Why?"

She moved to sit beside him. "I remember now. He was the one who was constantly brooding about how monstrous he was? Looked somewhat like Stefan Salvatore?"

Klaus was growing impatient. "That would be him. Now, why are you asking about the Cullen's? I was under the impression they were doing their best to avoid us after we nearly killed them in Chicago."

"Bella knows them. Apparently, she met them back in Forks and briefly dated Edward."

Klaus stared at her in shock for a moment before his lips settled into a sneer. "Well, it seems that the Cullen's have fallen off their self-made pedestal, haven't they? I might have judged Bella more if I didn't know about the drugging effects of being around Cold Ones for too long. Her appearance when she first arrived here certainly makes more sense."

"Do you think it was one of them that bit her?" Rebekah asked, the arm of the couch creaking under her tightening grip.

"It might explain how she has the bite but didn't change. Carlisle always did pride himself on his exceptional control."

"Not exceptional enough," Rebekah retorted before standing. "Is Elijah still out of town?"

"He is," Klaus told her, settling back in his chair and studying the sketch of Bella he had just finished. "Shall I ask him to do a little digging and see if he can't find out more about what happened in Forks and where the Cullen family is now?"

"Yes. I get the feeling there's more going on than just a bad break-up and I would like to know exactly what they've done before I tear them limb from limb."

Klaus was amused at her vengeful expression. "Going to kill them all then? I would have thought your attempts at bettering yourself would have kept you restrained to only the guilty ones."

"They call themselves a family, do they not? All for one and one for all? I just figured they'd prefer to stay together no matter what. Besides," Rebekah turned to exit the room. "Everyone knows that you never leave a survivor."

 **(A/N): Hey guys! Sorry again for the wait but this chapter only recently decided to cooperate with me again. Hopefully the next chapter will be easier but no promises. I've also just started posting another story, _Time to Go Home_ , which is a Hermione/Once Upon a Time crossover and would love it if you guys gave it a chance. I should be posting the second chapter to that story sometime in the next week so stay tuned!**

 **This chapter is unbetaed so any mistakes rest on my overworked shoulders. Let me know what you guys think!**


	7. Chapter 7

To say things weren't going well for Rebekah would be an understatement. Her attempts at locating the White Oak tree from the Mayor had failed and it seemed that the only ones who might have the information she needed would give anything to have her and her family done away with for good. It was too bad this all hadn't occurred before she'd slept with Damon- she could have snooped through his house then. Now her only hope at getting those records was to either break in or have sex with Damon again and find a chance to slip away while he was asleep. Neither option appealed to her, since both came with their own risks, and she really didn't want to fall into bed with Damon again.

And now Sage was back in town. The little hanger-on was trying to reconnect with Finn and Rebekah amused herself for a moment wondering how Sage would react if she told her that her true love was doing all he could end his miserable existence. Well, she was cozying up to Damon so it was most likely only a matter of time before he let it slip to her. Too bad she wouldn't be there to see the look on Sage's face but at least she could comfort herself with the memory of her pain at knowing that Finn had left without mentioning a word about his former love.

She couldn't deny that she was curious about Damon was up to though. Inviting her back to the Boarding House with him and Sage? He wanted something but what that was, she wasn't sure. Could he have seen that she was looking for something and was trying to figure what?

There was no way he could have a clue that there were any more White Oak stakes, she reassured herself. If he did, then he and his brother would be out searching for one to plunge into the heart of the first Mikaelson they could find.

Her phone rang then and she couldn't help sighing in annoyance when she saw who it was. "Must you insist on constantly bothering me for an update?" she hissed, mindful of those who could possibly be listening. "I said I would let you know when I found anything out."

"While I do so enjoy annoying you every chance I can," Klaus told her, sounding slightly amused but Rebekah was caught by the note of worry in his voice. "I was just calling to inform you that Bella is upstairs resting in one of the guest rooms."

Everything froze for a moment before Rebekah turned and almost raced to her car, only force of will keeping her at a human speed. "What happened?"

"I came upon her while I was out for a drive. From what she told me, apparently it was not a quiet night at the Forbes' house and she needed to escape."

Rebekah slammed her car door shut. "She said Caroline and the Sheriff were bothering her on Friday night but I mistakenly believed that they were moderately intelligent enough to see that she needed to sleep," she hissed. "This is getting ridiculous- we cannot allow her to continue staying there."

"Well then, I suggest you return as soon as possible so we can figure out what to do from here." Klaus hung up before she could respond.

Klaus hadn't been planning on bringing Bella over to the house today but when he had seen her stumbling down the street from the Forbes' house earlier, he hadn't been able to resist pulling up next to her and rolling the window down. She jerked to a stop beside the car, staring at him with wide eyes. Klaus finally broke the silence. "Well, aren't you looking terrible?"

"Well, don't you know how to sweet talk a woman," Bella snarked back but there was no real heat behind it. He was right, she did look terrible. There were deep bags under her eyes and her face was unusually pale. She was wrapped up in an oversized hoodie and gray sweatpants that Klaus idly thought reminded him of the people in commercials who were made up to look overworked and exhausted.

He studied her for another moment before sighing. "Get in."

She hesitated for a moment until she heard Caroline shout, "Bella!" She threw herself into the passenger seat and Klaus pulled away, smirking as the sounds of Caroline's cursing.

"Where are we going?" Bella finally asked, voice dull.

Klaus frowned at her. "Home. You look like you could do with some rest."

"I don't want to make you go out of your way..."

"I was headed home anyway."

"Thank you," Bella finally whispered, slowly relaxing into her seat.

"No need to thank me- I've always enjoyed a good damsel in distress."

She gave a small laugh before closing her eyes. "No wonder you have Caroline all out of sorts; she's always been a sucker for a knight in shining armor."

"Believe me when I say, no one thinks of me as a hero." Klaus kept his tone even but there was a small thrum of bitterness within him at the knowledge that, even if he did try to be one of the good guys, Caroline would never want to be with him. Sure, she'd be more than willing to use him to further her own needs but she wouldn't agree to be in relationship with him.

Bella surprised him once again. "Good. I've always found the heroic ones to be boring."

Klaus gave a short bark of laughter. "That's something we have in common then."

She sighed. "I have to say though, I think you dodged a bullet there. I don't know anyone other than Caroline who can nag like it's a competition in the Olympics and she's going for gold, though Liz holds her own pretty well."

"They're still unappreciative of the company you've been keeping?"

"That's the understatement of the century," Bella snorted. "From the way they talk, I better avoid your basement because the amount of heads you all must be hiding down there is astronomical."

"Most of us prefer ripping out hearts than removing heads but I suppose the sentiment is all the same." Bella gave another soft laugh.

He pulled up to the mansion then and parked the car in the garage, getting out quickly and moving to open Bella's door for her. "Thanks."

"No problem, love. Just want to be sure you manage to get into the house without collapsing."

"Funny," Bella responded dryly. "So funny I almost forgot to laugh."

"Resorting to grade school taunts, are we?"

"I'm far too tired to think up any good adult ones at the moment. Give me a few hours of sleep and I promise to wow you later with my overwhelming wit."

"I look forward to it." He led her up the stairs and into one of the guest bedrooms. "You can rest in here. Rebekah should be back in a few hours so feel free to sleep till then."

Bella just nodded tiredly before kicking off her shoes and slipping under the covers.

Klaus strode out the room and gently pulled the door close before zipping down the stairs and into his studio. He called his sister and informed her that Bella was at the house before settling in to wait.

Once he was finally sure that she was asleep, Klaus slipped into the room and stopped beside her prone form. Normally, he wasn't one for slipping inside someone's head for information; compelling them to tell him- yes, torturing the information out of them- always, but he'd always held himself back at pushing himself into someone else's mind. He found it far more intimate than he was usually comfortable with but he needed to know more about Bella and this seemed the quickest way to go about it.

Resting his hand lightly on her forehead, Klaus carefully slipped into Bella's mind. There was a brief resistance at first, a strange wall that at first seemed to push back against him before suddenly allowing him access.

It took a moment for Klaus to right himself and was surprised to find himself in a forest.

"Oh crap," he heard Bella mutter and turned to find her staring at him with large doe eyes. "Rebekah's brother is in my dream… this has to be against the friend code."

Klaus chuckled, glad that she thought him to be a figment of her imagination. "I believe it is. So, tell me, love," he moved to stand directly in front of her, bending over slightly so their faces were close together. "Now that you've gotten me here, what are you planning on doing with me?"

Bella squeaked and stumbled backwards, almost tripping over her own feet. "Don't do that!" she shouted once she had regained her footing.

"Do what?" he questioned innocently.

She scowled at him. "Don't do that whole smoldering look and sexy voice thing. You are my friends brother and most certainly off limits. And even if you weren't, you are crushing on my cousin Caroline and are so far out of my league."

He filed away the fact that she thought his voice was sexy for later. "Who are you trying to convince there? Seems to me like you're trying awfully hard to remind yourself to keep your hands to yourself, though I'm more than willing to play with you if that is what you wish."

Bella covered her face with her hands, shaking her head back and forth as she muttered incoherently to herself. Klaus finally took pity on her and allowed for a change of subject. "So, care to share why we currently find ourselves in a forest?"

Taking a deep breath, Bella finally dropped her hands from her face and focused on his question. "Oh, uh, this is the forest behind my dad's house in Forks."

"And we're here…" he led.

It was odd, even though she knew that Klaus wasn't really here and that her mind had just decided to have him pop up for some strange reason, the forest didn't seem as terrifying to Bella as it had before. "I got lost in here a few weeks before I moved," she finally admitted. "I was stumbling around for several hours before I finally collapsed, and then it was another few hours before anyone found me. I've been having nightmares of this place ever since."

Klaus frowned. "Why were you even in the forest in the first place?" He didn't peg her as someone who enjoyed going on jaunts through the woods.

His question caused the ache in her chest to suddenly flare up and she gasped, clutching her chest as tears filled her eyes. A split second later, he was beside her, holding her face in his hands. "Look at me, Bella," he instructed. "I need you to take a deep breath for me. That's it, love, there you go," he gently coached as he eased her out of the beginning of a panic attack. Once her breathing was even again, he slowly pulled away. For her to have a reaction this badly, he was willing to bet that something involving the Cold Ones had happened here.

Was this where she was bit? Or perhaps, since she seemed to feel a pain in her chest, it was more emotionally traumatizing. Is this where she and Edward broke up? But why break up in a forest?

"This is where he left me," Bella whimpered, tears streaming down her face. She stepped forward and buried her face in his chest, sobbing quietly. He froze, unsure of how to respond, before awkwardly wrapping his arms around her and emitting a soothing rumble from his chest.

So, his second thought was right. She and the parasite ended things here. Klaus could almost see it for himself: Edward leading her into the forest and ending things, zipping away with no warning and leaving her to fend for herself. It was cruelty at its finest.

"He's not worth your tears," he finally said, voice unusually gentle.

Bella shook her head. "I'm the one who's not worth it; I'm the one who wasn't enough."

Klaus pulled back then to look at her properly. "Is that what he told you?"

She nodded, roughly wiping away her tears. "He said I wasn't good enough for him and that he was tired of being something he wasn't. Then he was just gone. I tried to follow him, but it was dark and I couldn't tell which way he went." Her voice slowly grew more hysterical and cracked several times as she spoke.

This wasn't a normal reaction. Klaus studied Bella carefully as she slowly pulled herself together. This was more than just a broken heart or a break in her self-esteem. It was too wild a reaction for something like that.

Klaus focused for a moment, taking control of her dream and pulling them out of the dark forest and into a sunlit field.

Bella startled. "What…" she stared around in confusion. "Where are we?"

"I found that I didn't appreciate your previous dream, so I'm shaping a new one." He had brought her to a field that he and his family had frequently played in when they were younger, when they were human. "Nothing will harm you here; you can rest easy."

She just stared at him for a moment, tears still streaming down her face. "I don't know why I dreamed of you all the sudden, but I'm really glad I did."

If Klaus had been a lesser man, he might have blushed a little at her sincerity. "Get some rest, love. You'll need it for once Rebekah gets back." With that, he disappeared from her dream and returned back to the room.

He stretched, then turned to face his sister standing in the doorway. She just glared for a moment before flitting downstairs. Once he had followed her into the kitchen, Rebekah turned to face him. She opened and closed her mouth several times, trying to find the words to properly express the rage coursing through her.

"Before you start shrieking," Klaus finally said, as he moved to the cupboard and pulled out two glasses and a bottle of scotch. "I will say that I, unlike you, have never been one to enjoy digging around in someone else's mind. However, after having seen how Bella looks today, I'm sure you can understand why I felt it was necessary to see what I could find out."

Rebekah pursed her lips but finally sighed. "I suppose I can understand. So, what'd you find?"

Klaus' phone rang then and he glanced down to see who was calling. "What have you found?"

"It seems that the Cullen clan lived in Forks for a little over three years before abruptly moving mid-September," Elijah informed them. "Everyone was told they left due to a job offer Carlisle received unexpectedly but that was clearly a lie."

"What happened to Bella after they left?" Rebekah asked, moving closer to Klaus.

"It seems Isabella went into a catatonic state after their departure. They day they left, Isabella went missing for several hours and was found near midnight in the woods. She claims she got lost while out walking."

"Well, it seems that Bella felt the need to cover what truly happened." Klaus glanced over at Rebekah. "I've learned that young Edward brought her out into the woods and ended their relationship there before immediately leaving the area."

"There's more." Elijah's grim tone instantly made the two siblings wary. "I managed to receive an invitation into the Swan residence from Isabella's father and was able to take a look in her room. The stench of Cold One was unmistakable, even after all this time. For it to be that strong, she must have had at least one Cullen with her at almost all times- even while she slept. If it didn't rain so much here, I imagine one would be able to smell it all around the house as well."

"What does it matter how much time Bella spent with them?" Rebekah was growing impatient.

"As I am sure you are aware, Cold Ones are unable to use compulsion as we do but they do have their own methods for attracting their prey. In addition to their unnatural beauty, they release a type of chemical that intoxicates any humans that comes into contact with them and keeps them compliant. Generally, the humans experiencing this only have to endure for a short while before they are killed but Isabella was ingesting these pheromones almost constantly."

Klaus caught on quicker than his sister. "So, what you're saying is that Bella has been on an eight-month long drug trip and is only now crashing down from her high."

"Yes. Because we are the Original Vampires, I believe that being in close contact with us helped slow worst of the symptoms her body is exhibiting but that will not last for long. Think of Bella like a computer with a virus: rebooting it might make it run normally for a short time but the virus is still there destroying the system. Her father sending her to Mystic Falls was a shock to her system but it was not enough to fix the problem."

Rebekah was almost shaking with anger. "Did they know? Did they know what they were doing?"

"I believe so," Elijah responded. His tone was even but his siblings knew him well enough to sense the barely hidden rage he was also feeling. "Carlisle has insisted on keeping in close contact with humans his entire life as a vampire. It would be impossible for him to have not noticed his effect."

"But what would be the point?" Rebekah asked. "While I could understand them toying with her for a short while, eight months is a long time, even for a vampire. Considering how volatile most Cold Ones are, there must have been some other motivation."

"Control," Klaus answered, tone deadly. "Like a human drug dealer, the Cullen's got her hooked and then cut her off so that she would be compliant to whatever they wanted. I imagine they planned on coming back after a short while, long enough for Bella to be desperately longing for them but not so long that she would have been able to move on, and then reasserting their control over her completely."

"I agree," Elijah informed them. "Isabella would have submitted to whatever they desired because she would have been completely dependent on their presence to function. The only thing they didn't take into account was her father's reaction to her state. She started to deteriorate so rapidly that all he could think to do was remove her from Forks. It seems that the plan was originally to send her to live with her mother in Florida but then they decided that staying with her cousin, Caroline, might do her some good."

Rebekah picked up the nearest object and threw it against the wall, enraged. "We should have killed them when we had the chance!"

"I wanted to kill them," Klaus reminded her, desperately trying to keep his own anger in check. "You were the one insisting on sparing them."

"Mikael was still after us and leaving a trail of destroyed Cold Ones behind us would have been just as obvious as sending him a bloody calling card!"

"Since I was not present when this happened, would one of you mind explaining to me how your first meeting with the Cullen's came about?"

Klaus turned to Rebekah. "Why don't you tell him, little sister. After all, you certainly played a large roll in why they are currently still inflicting themselves on the human population."

 _Chicago, 1922_

 _Klaus couldn't help smiling at the sight of Rebekah and Stefan dancing together. He'd had his doubts about Stefan previously, sure that he would be yet another pathetic waste as all of Rebekah's liaisons usually were, but he'd found Stefan to be much more fun than he'd originally thought. His presence helped heal some of the cracks that had been left by his other siblings._

 _The song ended and then couple headed over to where he was sitting. "Taking a break for the evening?" Stefan asked as he grabbed his drink and downed it in one gulp._

 _"My brother has never been one to appreciate the finer things in life," Rebekah told Stefan as she slid into the booth. "Such as dancing."_

 _"On the contrary, Rebekah," Klaus responded with a smirk. "I only enjoy such simplistic things as dancing when I can do so with the finest of partners."_

 _"No one here has caught your eye?" Stefan asked, slouching in next to Rebekah. "I hadn't pegged you as someone so picky."_

 _"Then it seems you do not know me as well as you claim," Klaus grinned at him and then gave a mock frown as he shook his head sadly. "And you call yourself my brother."_

 _Stefan laughed. "I'll have to be sure to work harder in the future." Rebekah smiled in delight at the easy comradery between the two men._

 _Gloria's song ended then and she moved off the stage, a silent signal that the speakeasy was closing for the night. The trio moved towards the door, pulling on their coats as they stepped out into the dark alley. Stefan turned to Rebekah and lifted her hand, gently kissing the back of it. "Until next time," he told her with a smirk, then flashed away._

 _Rebekah stared after him with a gentle, love-struck gaze and Klaus snorted. "Look like a fool on your own time, little sister. I would like to make it home before dawn."_

 _She whirled around. "No need to be mean, Nik. I haven't forgotten about you."_

 _"And what a relief that is." He was about to say more when he felt a strange pressure on his mind and he half turned with a snarl._

 _"What-" Rebekah started to ask when the scent of a Cold One reached them._

 _Klaus moved and swiftly pinned a copper-haired parasite against the alley wall by the throat. "Now, what do we have here?" His tone was pleasant but his eyes were lit with excitement at the coming violence._

 _The Cold One struggled against his grip. "What are you?" he finally hissed, eyeing Klaus in confusion._

 _"You must be a newborn. Well then, allow me introduce myself: I am Klaus Mikaelson and this is my sister, Rebekah. We are Original Vampires, true vampires, if you will, when compared to your pathetic kind. Now, tell me why you were trying to get inside my head!"_

 _"It was an accident," came another voice from the alley's entryway. They turned and saw another Cold One, this one with blond hair and golden eyes. "He's just been turned recently and is unable to control his gift."_

 _"Well, consider this your first and last lesson as a vampire: learn to control your so-called "gifts" before you venture out in public, else you come upon someone much stronger than you and they consider it an attack." Klaus moved to rip off the boy's head as he desperately tried to escape._

 _"Nik, no!" Rebekah moved beside him and grabbed his arm. "You can't kill him."_

 _"I think you'll find that I can," he snapped at her._

 _"We are trying to keep a low profile," she hissed. "Do you think littering the streets with the burning remains of Cold Ones will help do that?"_

 _"Please, my name is Carlisle Cullen," the blond informed them, hands held out as if trying to calm a startled animal. "Edward meant you no harm. His gift can't be harnessed the same way others can."_

 _Rebekah squeezed his arm, eyes pleading, and Klaus sighed. "Fine then. I guess this is your lucky day." He leaned in close so Edward wouldn't be able to escape his gaze. "You will tell no one of your encounter with us."_

 _"I will tell no one," Edward repeated, the compulsion quickly taking root. Rebekah moved to Carlisle's and did the same before returning to Klaus' side._

 _Klaus threw the boy at Carlisle's feet. "I suggest you leave before I change my mind."_

 _Carlisle pulled Edward up and they both disappeared a second later._

"So, you allowed both of them to live," Elijah mused. "How unlike you, Niklaus."

"It seems I should have followed my instincts," Klaus responded, glaring at Rebekah.

Rebekah threw her hands in the air. "Yes, blame me for this. I apologize for not automatically knowing the any Cold One we allowed to live would go on to terrorize our little sister!"

There was a pause as they each considered what she said. "Our little sister?" asked Klaus.

"I-" Rebekah looked lost for a moment before she rallied. "Fine, maybe not 'our' little sister but I certainly view her as mine."

"You've known her for less than a month, yet you already feel so strongly about her?" Elijah queried.

"Yes. It's strange, but I already feel as loyal to her as I do to both of you." Rebekah couldn't help turning to Klaus, worried as to how he would react. Would he view Bella as some kind of threat or obstacle now?

Klaus was surprised to find that his feelings toward Bella hadn't changed in the slightest at Rebekah's revelation. He still found the girl intriguing and was slowly growing to care for her, though he was unsure as to what sort of caring that was. While he had never approved of any of previous string of lovers, he wasn't necessarily against his sister having friends; she had just never been good at making any. Hopefully it would never come to the point where she would have to show who she felt more loyalty to: him or Bella?

"Is there anything we can do to help ease her symptoms?" Klaus finally asked and both of his siblings gave silent sighs of relief. "I've noticed her reactions to certain triggers are surprisingly strong- which makes sense given the supernatural element to them- and I believe there's a chance it could lead to physical harm if left unchecked."

"I would think that our blood might be of some help," Elijah stated, pleased at the concern his volatile brother was showing. "But it would best to consult a witch to see if there are any spells that could be used."

The sound of footsteps upstairs quickly ended the conversation, Klaus instructing Elijah to try and find where the Cullen's were currently located before hanging up. Rebekah moved to clean up the broken remains of the glass she had thrown previously and had just finished when Bella stepped into the kitchen.

"Hey, Bekah," she greeted softly, feeling a little shy at having come to her house without being invited first.

"Bella," she beamed at the younger girl. "Nik told me you were resting upstairs. Did you have a good nap?"

Bella's eyes flicked over to meet Klaus' and she turned bright red. "Um, it was fine. I had a weird dream but that's it."

Rebekah shot another glare at her brother before moving to link arms with Bella. "You weren't sleeping for very long, are you sure you don't want to rest anymore?"

She shook her head, quietly allowing Rebekah to lead her out of the kitchen. "I'm good."

It was obvious that she was lying, but Rebekah knew her well enough at that point to refrain from arguing the point. "Since you're here, shall we watch a movie? I feel like staying in this afternoon and being lazy."

Klaus stayed in the kitchen, listening to Rebekah easily rouse Bella into conversation as they headed into the home theater room that both Rebekah and Kol had come to favor. He guessed that his baby sister was hoping that watching a relaxing movie would lull Bella back to sleep and he hoped she was right. She had barely rested at all and he wondered if she had been too surprised by his presence in her dream to truly sleep or if the pull on her mind had been too strong for her to be at ease in the field he had pushed her subconscious into.

Either way, he knew Rebekah would keep a close eye on her for the next few hours, leaving Klaus free to run a few errands.

It seemed that a stop at the Forbes' house would be in order and he reveled in the fight he knew would be coming his way.

 **(A/N): Hello all! Bet you didn't expect to hear from me so soon, did you? Well you're in luck; Klaus would not shut up. We'll see whether that continues for the next chapter but you just never know. I have also posted the next chapter for _Time to Go Home_ , my Hermione/OUAT story and I would love it so much if you all went and checked it out. I honestly can't say when I will next update both because my muse is all sorts of unpredictable but also because I am getting ready to move abroad so that has turned into a bit of a time consuming endeavor. I'm shocked, really.**

 **Also, I am almost ready to post my Bella/Elijah story, which is just a mess of tears and angst. Are we interested?**

 **This chapter is unbetaed so any mistakes are all mine! Thanks to Hannbells for loving this so much and making me feel all sorts of pressured to get this out for her.**


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